2024 Ligon Endowment Purchase
In honor of what would have been her 108th birthday, the Seminole Nation Museum is happy to announce its 2024 Joan Roberts Ligon Collections Endowment purchases. This year, the Seminole Nation Museum acquired three important pieces to add to its ever-growing collection of over 1600 works of art. An exhibition of the museum’s Ligon Endowment purchases are on display in the art gallery of the Seminole Nation Museum until Saturday, September 14th.
“sisters of the evening star” is a framed and matted 1982 ink on paper by the late Benjamin Harjo, Jr. (1945-2023), a Seminole/Absentee Shawnee artist. ‘sisters” is the second painting of Harjo’s acquired through the museum’s endowment fund, the first being “birds of wonder”.
Also purchased this year are two works by ground-breaking Native American artist Jerome Tiger (1941-1967). “Going to the Stomp Dance” is a 1965 ink on paper featuring a light turquoise wash depicting a traditional Seminole family trekking to a ceremonial dance on horseback and in wagons. Another work by Jerome Tiger was also purchased; a vibrant, untitled watercolor and pencil by Tiger from 1964 depicts figures on horseback traversing rough terrain against a cloudy sky. Tiger, who was Seminole and Muscogee, became famous for what was known as the Tiger style-a unique combination of spiritual vision, humane understanding, and technical virtuosity.
Named after one of the museum’s founders, educator Joan Roberts Ligon, the Collections Endowment provides income to annually purchase quality artworks that expand the depth and breadth of the stories the Museum tells. Joan was instrumental in the founding of the Seminole Nation Historical Society in 1973 and was a long-standing member of its Board of Directors. During her three decades as a volunteer at the Seminole Nation Museum, Joan served as Registrar – organizing, accessioning, and cataloging thousands of artifacts, artworks, and images celebrating the history and culture of the Seminole Nation and its capital of Wewoka.
Collections Endowment
Upon her passing in 2013, and in recognition of her love of history, education, and service to the museum, Joan’s family chose to honor her with the establishment of a permanent collections endowment. The fund allows annually for the purchase of quality pieces to enhance the museum’s mission. Through the artworks and artifacts acquired by the fund, Joan’s memory touches new generations of visitors and honors the rich and vibrant history of Wewoka.
