Exhibit Launch: Lakota Wiá by Claire Heldman

The Institute for Human Science and Culture is honored to host a new exhibit by artist, Claire Heldman Oyate Wankan Wiá. Lakota Wiá features original art alongside unique handcrafted pieces of cultural and artistic significance made by and for the artist’s mother, Delma Heldman, to whom the exhibit is dedicated. Join us for an opening reception on October 1, 2021 from 4:00 – 7:00 ET. Lakota Wiá will run until January 29, 2022.

About the Artist

Claire Heldman Oyate Wankan Wiá (The People See Her Woman) is a member of the Lakota from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of Eagle Butte, South Dakota, and a life-long resident of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. She creates contemporary drawings and paintings that draw on her Native American heritage. Her work is visualized through a combination of meditation and prayer and incorporates both found materials and those of cultural significance such as cow skulls, horsehair, and leather. Heldman’s art has been shown in galleries throughout the United States; her work also hangs in the Governor’s Multicultural Gallery in Columbus. She has been recognized both locally and nationally for her talents, including being named Artist of the Year in 2004 by the Ohio Arts Council. In describing her artwork, Heldman says: “I endeavor to bridge cultures through art with the hope to bring a better understanding of individuality among all races.”

Health & Safety

The University of Akron currently requires that ALL individuals – regardless of vaccination status – wear a mask / face covering in indoor public areas across all campuses.

All guests must provide tracking information upon entering the building, by signing in at the reception desk.

Please stay home if you do not feel well, have been diagnosed with COVID-19, or had direct contact with an individual diagnosed with or suspected to have COVID-19.

Accessibility

A wheelchair accessible ramp is located on the northeast side of the building, near the main entrance. An interior elevator provides access to the exhibition gallery, located on the fourth floor. A wheelchair is also kept on-site and is available for loan to those visiting the museum and archives.

For more information, see our accessibility page: https://uakron.edu/chp/about-us/accessibility.

About the Institute for Human Science and Culture

The Institute for Human Science and Culture (IHSC) is a multidisciplinary institute that promotes education and research in the history, preservation, documentation, and interpretation of the human experience. The mission of the IHSC is to explore what it means to be human. The IHSC promotes document- and object-based, experiential education in arts, humanities, and science. The IHSC is one of three branches of the Cummings Center.

About the Cummings Center

The Drs. Nicholas & Dorothy Cummings Center for the History of Psychology (CCHP) cares for, provides access to, and interprets the historical record of psychology and related human sciences. In addition to the Institute, the Center is the home to the Archives of the History of American Psychology (AHAP) and the National Museum of Psychology (NMP).