For the Love of Canines
October 22, 2022 - August 27, 2023
Exhibition open October 22, 2022 – August 27, 2023
Wild canines, including foxes, coyotes, and wolves, have held significant social and cultural meaning to humans worldwide throughout history. However, there are conflicted emotional opinions regarding these familiar predators. Foxes, for example, while prized for their beauty and their cunningness, are despised for preying on smaller livestock and poultry, such as chickens and ducks. Coyotes, a canine species native to North America, nearly brought to extinction during western settlement, are also part of some Native cultures’ cosmologies. Sometimes considered a creator, Coyote might also be wicked or a buffoon. Of all wild canines, wolves have perhaps caused the most dread historically. Feared by ancient farmers to present day ranchers, wolves that at times prey on sheep, cattle, and other domestic animals, have also been known to kill humans. Alternatively, the famous Etruscan sculpture of La Lupa Capitolina (The Capitoline Wolf) from the fifth century BCE depicts a she-wolf caring for twins, Romulus and Remus, who founded city of Rome. Still, the one thing that all wild canines have common is a genetic relation to our own much beloved domestic dogs.
For the Love of Canines questions humans’ relation and fascination with canines, whether love or loathing, through works of art from NMWA’s permanent collection.










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Transformations: Wildlife in Inuit Art and Culture
Through May 5, 2024Through cultural stories, Transformations seeks to explore Inuit history, values, and beliefs. The exhibit is comprised of works from the permanent collection and items on loan from private collections. The hope, as it is with all exhibits, is that visitors take away a deeper appreciation of the artwork and perhaps are introduced to something that they did not know before. Most importantly, we want to bring attention to the fact that today Inuit artists are producing powerful artworks that reference histories and that, at the same time, confront contemporary issues such as conservation and environmental concerns.
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Benjamin Mkapa African Wildlife Photography Awards
Through April 21, 2024Bringing Africa to the World, and the World to Africa. What separates the Mkapa Photo Awards from other photo competitions is their core commitment to conservation through categories that are specific to topics of concern in modern Africa.
See the Exhibit