Frank Buffalo Hyde

Painter Frank Buffalo Hyde grew up in the Onondaga Nation, where he absorbed much of the pop culture that is still central to his worldview. Throughout his career, Buffalo Hyde has presented “pop” iconography — UFOs, hamburgers, and corporate logos — in parallel with Native symbology such as the bison on the Onondaga reservation and Indigenous leaders and dancers.

Buffalo Hyde’s works grab attention through their bright colors instantly recognizable iconography but resist easy stereotyping through their embedded messages about the fragmented nature of Native life.

Native Americana is a homecoming for Buffalo Hyde, who left Central New York for New Mexico, where he studied at  the Santa Fe Fine Arts Institute and the Institute of American Indian Arts. Frank Buffalo Hyde lives in Northfield, Minnesota. His work is in the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, Hood Museum of Art, Gilcrease Museum, Peabody Essex Museum, and  Everson Museum of Art.

In addition to large-format paintings, Native Americana will include a variety of interactive and mixed-media installations throughout the Museum.