ST. LOUIS, Nov. 18, 2025—A new collection catalogue at the Saint Louis Art Museum charts the rise of Native American studio art in the 20th century and introduces the museum’s William P. Healey Collection.
Gifted to the museum in 2023, the Healey collection features 100 works of modern and contemporary Native American art, including drawings, paintings and sculpture by 63 Indigenous artists focused primarily in the Western United States. The gift introduced 55 new artists to the museum collection, including major names in the field such as Fred Kabotie, Stephen Mopope, Pop Chalee and Allan Houser.
The new publication, “Native Studio Art Since the 1920s,” illustrates works from the Healey collection and conveys major narratives and key figures of 20th-century Native American art. An under-studied area of art history, the book sheds light on the intergenerational story of modern Indigenous painters and sculptors who first developed, then revolutionized the movement for Native American fine art.
“Bill Healey’s gift significantly bolstered the museum’s collection of Native American art, allowing a more-continuous narrative that connects the historic collection to recent acquisitions of current works. This book introduces general readers to Native art of the 20th century, while also advancing scholarship in the field,” said Alexander Brier Marr, SLAM’s associate curator of Native American art, who also edited the publication.
In addition to Marr’s contributions, the 230-page catalogue features essays by a multivocal group of authors, including the museum’s associate paper conservator Sophie Barbisan, leading art historians and artists’ relatives. Essays examine local and international legacies of individual artists, key themes across the collection and groundbreaking technical analysis. A richly illustrated section of plates, accompanied by detailed cataloguing notes, brings many outstanding works to light for the first time.
“Native Studio Art Since the 1920s” is available for purchase online and in museum shops.
Highlights from the Healey collection were featured in a 2024 SLAM exhibition “Native American Art of the 20th Century: The William P. Healey Collection.” William P. Healey, who lives in Jackson, Wyo., is a retired real estate developer and an avid, lifelong collector with a deep interest in Western art.
CONTACT: Molly Morris, 314.655.5250, molly.morris@slam.org
