Artists You Should Know: Wendy Red Star

Rooted in the Crocker’s commitment to increased diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the arts, Artists You Should Know is a series of classes spotlighting artists from traditionally marginalized backgrounds in the Museum’s collection. Despite having a lasting impact on their peers — and in many cases, having achieved widespread recognition in the art world — these artists are not a part of our broader cultural lexicon in the same way that their white, straight, able-bodied male counterparts are.

Wendy Red Star is a mixed media artist whose work calls attention to the marginalization of Native Americans. Humor and satire draw viewers into her work. Juxtaposing mass-produced imagery with her personal identity, she seeks to confront the romanticized idealizations represented in the canon. Her work is collected by the National Museum of the American Indian, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, and the Crocker. Following a visual presentation and discussion, collage a paper star quilt using colorful shapes and copies of family photos inspired by Red Star’s quilt series.

This class is virtual and takes place over Zoom.

Participants must provide their own supplies: supply list

Instructor: Laurie Seban is a Northern California native with a Master of Art in Art History from the University of California, Davis, specializing in non-Western and modern art. She currently teaches Native American art at California State University, Sacramento.