Freedom
Shelley Niro, Borders, 2008, printed 2022, archival pigment print, 18 1/4 x 47 7/8 in. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2022.28.2.
Additional Resources
Blog - Shelley Niro's Borders Offers an Indigenous Perspective on Democracy
Shelley Niro
Borders
- What feeling or mood do you get from this artwork? What do you think the artist wanted to communicate? What about it makes you say that?
This artwork is one of four digitally manipulated images in a series called Borders by Mohawk artist Shelley Niro. Barbed wire and fenced-off roads are paired with opposing clenched fists. Niro's composition creates an immediate sense of the physical and psychological relationships between people while alluding to ecological, geographical, and political impact of borders.
- Why do people move or migrate? Are people free to move around or are there barriers to their movement?
- How can a border be good or bad? Has the idea of borders changed over time? How can we continue to strive to eliminate oppressive borders ?
Content Contributors
Exhibition sponsored by Kenneth C. Griffin
Learning and engagement programming for
We the People: The Radical Notion of Democracy is sponsored by:
Sarah and Ross Perot, Jr. Foundation | Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates, & Woodyard, P.L.L.C. | Johnny and Jeanie Morris, Bass Pro Shops | Alturas Foundation | Harriet and Warren Stephens, Stephens Inc. | Sotheby’s | Bob and Becky Alexander | Marybeth and Micky Mayfield | Lamar and Shari Steiger | Jeff and Sarah Teague / Citizens Bank | Arkansas Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities | Avis and Bill Bailey | Scarlett and Neff Basore | June Carter Family | Terri and Chuck Erwin | Jackye and Curtis Finch | The Harrison and Rhonda French Family | Jim and Susan von Gremp | Laurice Hachem | Shannon and Charles Holley | Valorie and Randy Lawson / Lawco Energy Group | Donna and Mack McLarty | Steve and Susan Nelson | Neal and Gina Pendergraft | Helen Porter | JT and Imelda Rose | Lee and Linda Scott | Stella Boyle Smith Trust, Catherine and Michael Mayton, Trustees | William Reese Company
600 Museum Way,
Bentonville, AR 72712
(479) 418-5700
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Tue
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Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas. Crystal Bridges trails and grounds open daily from sunrise to sunset.
507 SE E St,
Bentonville, AR 72712
(479) 367-7500
Tue — Thu | Sun
10am — 6pm
Friday | Sat
11am — 8pm
Mon
Closed
Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas.