Bunky Echo–Hawk (born 1975) is a
Native American art
Visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas encompasses the visual artistic practices of the indigenous peoples of the Americas from ancient times to the present. These include works from South America and North America, which includes ...
ist and poet who is best known for his
acrylic paint
Acrylic paint is a fast-drying paint made of pigment suspended in acrylic polymer emulsion and plasticizers, silicone oils, defoamers, stabilizers, or metal soaps. Most acrylic paints are water-based, but become water-resistant when dry. De ...
ings concerning Native American topics and
hip-hop culture. He works in a variety of media that include paintings, graphic design, photography, and writing.
Biography
Walter Roy "Bunky" Echo–Hawk Jr.
[ is a member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, and an enrolled member of the ]Yakama Nation
The Yakama Indian Reservation (spelled Yakima until 1994) is a Native American reservation in Washington state of the federally recognized tribe known as the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. The tribe is made up of Klikitat, ...
. He attended the Institute of American Indian Arts
The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is a public tribal land-grant college in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The college focuses on Native American art. It operates the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA), which is housed in the historic ...
in the 1990s. He served as the "co-founder and the Executive Director of NVision, a national Native nonprofit that focuses on Native youth development," and he is also a traditional singer and dancer. In 2020, Echo-Hawk was featured in the PBS series ''American Masters
''American Masters'' is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and those who have left an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the ...
'' for his work on Native rights and environmentalism.
Themes and style
Scholar Olena McLaughlin, writing in the journal ''Transmotion'', categorizes Echo-Hawk's work as follows: "Although it is within the stream of Native
Pop, Echo-Hawk’s work leans more towards Pop Surrealism or Lowbrow, a movement that emerged in the 1970s after Pop Art. It engages popular culture, but in a more concrete story-telling way with slightly less ambiguity." In 2011 and beyond, Echo-Hawk collaborated with Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...
to develop Native-inspired apparel through their N-7 and Power of Perseverance Collection.
Personal life and arrest
On October 16, 2021, Echo-Hawk was injured and his 15-year-old daughter Alexie was killed in a head-on crash early morning, as they were driving to the Pawnee Nation for a ceremonial tribal dance in Oklahoma.
On January 10, 2022, Bunky Echo-Hawk was arrested for "lewd or indecent acts to children under 16." A girl reported to a Pawnee County DHS worker that "she was repeatedly touched inappropriately by Echo-Hawk, 46, between 'from the time she was 7 or 8 until 11 or 12 years old'."[ His ]preliminary hearing
Within some criminal justice systems, a preliminary hearing, preliminary examination, preliminary inquiry, evidentiary hearing or probable cause hearing is a proceeding, after a criminal complaint has been filed by the prosecutor, to determine ...
was scheduled for March 15, 2022.[
]
Public collections
*Spencer Museum of Art
The Spencer Museum of Art is an art museum operated by the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Spencer Museum seeks to "...present its collection as a living archive that motivates object- ...
*National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers.
The museum has three ...
Exhibitions
* "Ramp It Up: Skateboard Culture in Native America," National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers.
The museum has three ...
, 2009
* Founder's Day Performance, Live audience intervention painting, Feb. 1, 2010, Willamette University
Willamette University is a private liberal arts college with locations in Salem and Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest college in the Western United States. Originally named the Oregon Institute, the school was an unaffiliated ...
* "Bunky Echo-Hawk: Modern Warrior," Field Museum
The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...
, 2013
* Shows in Minneapolis, Chicago, New York and Greensboro, NC
References
External links
bunkyechohawk.com
official website
Oral History Interview with Bunky Echo-Hawk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Echo-Hawk, Bunky
1975 births
Living people
20th-century Native Americans
21st-century Native Americans
Institute of American Indian Arts alumni
Naropa University alumni
Native American painters
Pawnee people
Yakama
20th-century American painters
21st-century American painters
20th-century American male artists
21st-century American male artists
People from Toppenish, Washington
Painters from Washington (state)