Heard Museum

The Heard Museum is a private, not-for-profit museum in Phoenix, Arizona, dedicated to the advancement of American Indian art. Founded in 1929, it presents the stories of American Indian people from a first-person perspective and mounts exhibitions of traditional and contemporary art by American Indian artists and artists influenced by American Indian art. The museum's main Phoenix location has been designated a Phoenix Point of Pride, and it draws approximately 250,000 visitors annually. As an affiliate of the Smithsonian Affiliations program and a member of the North American Reciprocal Museums program, the Heard holds international recognition for the quality of its collections, educational programming, and festivals.

Dwight B. and Maie Bartlett Heard established the museum in 1929 to house their personal collection of art. Much of the archaeological material in their collection came from La Ciudad Indian ruin, located at 19th and Polk streets in Phoenix, which the couple had purchased in 1926. The institution began as a small museum in a small southwestern city and has grown substantially in size and stature over the decades. Portions of the museum were designed by architect Bennie Gonzales, who also designed Scottsdale City Hall. The museum expanded its reach through branch locations, operating Heard Museum West in Surprise until its closure in 2009, and Heard Museum North Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Arizona, which closed in May 2014. Leadership has included several notable directors: Dr. Letitia Chambers, the first Heard director of American Indian descent, served from January 2010 through July 2012; James Pepper Henry, a member of the Kaw Nation of Oklahoma and the Muscogee Creek Nation, led the museum from August 5, 2013 to February 27, 2015; and David M. Roche became director in January 2016.

The Heard Museum's collection comprises over 40,000 items, supported by a library and archives holding more than 34,000 volumes. The museum's galleries, classrooms, and performance spaces cover more than 130,000 square feet (12,000 m2). Its collections and exhibitions focus particularly on the indigenous peoples of the Southwest and the Colorado Plateau, presenting their stories and artistic traditions. The museum collaborates with artists and tribal communities to offer visitors a distinctive perspective on Native art, with particular emphasis on the intersection of American Indian art with broader artistic and cultural themes.

Among the museum's signature collections are the Mareen Allen Nichols Collection, containing 260 pieces of contemporary jewelry, and the Barry Goldwater Collection of 437 historic Hopi kachina dolls. The museum also presents the exhibition Home: Native Peoples in the Southwest, and a significant exhibition on the 19th-century boarding school experiences of Native Americans, which uses haunting photographs, old uniforms, oral interviews, and memorabilia to document the forced removal of children from their reservations to government schools designed to erase their culture. Adjacent to the Libby Amphitheater stands the American Indian Veterans National Memorial, consisting of four bronze-colored panels honoring American Indian veterans and three sculptures by Chiricahua Apache sculptor Allan Houser and Santa Clara Pueblo sculptor Michael Naranjo.

The main Phoenix campus of the Heard Museum encompasses more than 130,000 square feet of gallery, classroom, and performance space. The outdoor Libby Amphitheater serves as a venue for major events, including the annual World Championship Hoop Dance Contest. The American Indian Veterans National Memorial is situated next to this amphitheater. The museum's architecture includes work by Bennie Gonzales, who designed portions of the building.

The Heard Museum is located in Phoenix, Arizona, in the United States. As a private, not-for-profit institution, it remains independently operated while maintaining affiliations with broader museum networks. Visitors can access information through the museum's website at www.heard.org. The museum hosts several major annual events that draw substantial audiences: the World Championship Hoop Dance Contest, typically held in early February; El Mercado de Las Artes, usually in November, featuring strolling mariachis and artwork by Hispanic artists from Arizona and New Mexico; and the Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market, held every March since 1958, which attracts 15,000 visitors and features over 600 Native American artists in a juried competition with awards including Best of Show, Best of Division, and the Conrad House award.