In the Indigenous artist Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds’s new exhibition, “Honor Song”—on view at the Oklahoma Contemporary museum through August 4—guests are greeted with one of his largest and most powerful works to date. Titled Genocide and Democracy II, the large red-and-white work is covered in slogans, evoking a sense of rage and violence. “Natives survive in spite of the empire,” reads one tile. “Wicked America molest sacred Native ways,” declares another. It’s hard not to instantly feel a punch in your gut.
Heap of Birds may not be a household name, but his impactful works, spanning four decades, are finally getting their due with his first major retrospective. Curated by Pablo Barrera and AnnaVittoria Pickett, the exhibition spotlights the Cheyenne and Arapaho artist’s conceptual works addressing Indigenous rights, history, and relationships to the land. “The spectacular opportunity is a great honor,” Heap of Birds tells Vogue of the exhibition. “This diverse and broad exhibition experience of sharing has been wonderful. I am thankful for seeing clear, consistent, and deep expressions of care for Indigenous life, personal reflection, and beauty in this lovely natural world.”
The artist came up in the 1970s New York art scene but in 1981 relocated to his tribal land in Oklahoma, where he has worked since. In “Honor Song,” Heap of Birds continues to tackle the complexities of being an Indigenous artist today, reckoning with the intergenerational trauma that his community has endured while also trying to maintain traditional Native values in a world where it can often be challenging. “The primary subjects of his work range from references to ceremony and sacred landscapes to meditations on unresolved historical narratives,” says Barrera. “The totality of the artwork reveals a through line: Heap of Birds harnesses color, text, place, and the language of abstraction to reconstruct histories, engage with the treatment of global Indigenous communities, and advance the rights of, and for, people and land.”
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All the works in “Honor Song”—including paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, and more—are organized into four thematic sections: reckoning, resilience, renewal, and rhythm. In many of his works, Heap of Birds also uses multiples of four. (The number holds a special ceremonial significance in Cheyenne culture; a council of 44 chiefs is a key aspect of the Cheyenne self-governance system, for example.) One sees this reference in his 2022 work Was Told Twelve Times, where 12 multicolor quadrants repeatedly read “Do Not Dance for Pay”—a clear statement on the commodification of traditional powwow dancing.
While Heap of Birds’s works can be heavy and dark in their subject matter, the exhibition’s curators agree that the artist has also found ways to uplift his Indigenous community—as well as to offer a way in for those encountering his work and its messaging for the first time. “Guests viewing this collection are likely to experience deep reflection, empathy, connection, and joy,” says Pickett. “His art often evokes responses ranging from reverence and curiosity to profound appreciation for cultural resilience, identity, and community connection.”
She goes on: “Despite the heavy and complex topics Edgar tackles, the experience has been joyful, as Edgar’s role as a teacher and community leader brings warmth and positivity to the entire process. A key takeaway has been realizing the profound impact Edgar’s art has in fostering meaningful dialogue, community connection, and cultural understanding.”
