WINIKO Facilitating Reunions for Objects, Families, and Cultures at First Americans Museum

First Americans Museum (FAM) opened in September 2021 with two inaugural exhibitions. WINIKO: Life of an Object, Selections from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian features items collected from the 39 tribes in Oklahoma during the early years of the 20thcentury. FAM has initiated a process of reuniting the items with the descendant families/Tribes and their cultures. This presentation discusses how the curatorial team worked with the 4Rs of Indigenous methodologies (Respect, Reciprocity, Responsibility, and Relationships) to guide the work with the tribal communities to facilitate this reunion. Participants include the museum’s director, curator, and collections manager.

This session was part of the ATALM annual conference held in Temecula, California, on October 25-27, 2022.