Embark on a journey through Australia’s cultural landscape with two poignant documentaries that illuminate Indigenous perspectives on art, history, and identity. Mr. Patterns chronicles the transformative impact of Geoff Bardon, an art teacher who, in the early 1970s, introduced Western desert Aboriginal communities to the medium of dot painting. Working alongside the Papunya artists, Bardon facilitated the resurgence of traditional designs, intertwining cultural expression with economic independence. In Too Many Captain Cooks, Rembarrnga elder Paddy Fordham Wainburranga offers a critical retelling of Captain James Cook’s arrival from an Aboriginal perspective.

Mr. Patterns generously provided by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

Too Many Captain Cooks generously provided by Ronin Films

Join Museum volunteer docents for a discussion of Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross making connections a selection of artworks and artists featured at the Museum. Participants should have completed the book prior to meeting. Register online for guiding questions that will be discussed at the book club. Arrive early to place a lunch order with the Café! Space is limited, advanced reservations are recommended.

Join us for a compelling conversation featuring William L. Fox, Peter E. Pool Director of the Institute for Art + Environment and Aspara DiQuinzio, Senior Curator of Contemporary Art and the curator of Eternal Signs: Indigenous Australian Art from the Kaplan and Levi Collection. This program explores the deep connections between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artwork, ancestral knowledge, and the environment. Together, our speakers will discuss how these works communicated timeless cultural narratives, cosmologies, and relationships to land – offering powerful insights into art’s role in sustaining identity, memory, and ecological understanding. Audiences will gain a richer appreciation for how Indigenous artists express ancestral wisdom through symbol, gesture, and tradition in ways that resonate across generations and continents. 

Image: 

Ginger Riley Munduwalawala, Limen Bight River During the Wet, 1995-96. Acrylic on canvas, 53 1/8 x 95 3/8 in. (135 x 242 cm). Collection of the Nevada Museum of Art, gift of Robert Kaplan and Margaret Levi. © Estate of Ginger Riley. Courtesy of Alcaston Gallery, Melbourne. Photo: Zocalo Studios

The Museum is closed today in observance of the holiday. 

Every plant in the surrounding landscape has fought, migrated, and evolved to survive. In the Great Basin, plant communities are diverse and resilient, and Elizabeth Leger’s research lab is focused on understanding what enables individual plants to thrive despite drought, invasion, fire, and grazing pressure. Join Dr. Leger as she shares some of the most surprising discoveries from her work, including moments when her assumptions were challenged.

Enjoy a free screening of this short documentary film exploring the life and work of Carmen Herrera, a pioneering abstract painter in the 40s and 50s. A discussion with Aspara DiQuinzio, Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, to follow the screening. 

The Museum is closed on Friday, September 26 in celebration of The Love of Art event. 

Due to an emergency as of 12:30 pm, this program is canceled.

Caitlin Bell, Artistic Director of local, contemporary dance company, Collateral & Co., discusses the ways in which dance and visual art have influenced and complemented each other, shaping cultural expression and artistic innovation from classical to contemporary periods. 

The 1930s marked a pivotal period in the history of fashion. The Great Depression left a lasting impact on society and the fashion industry, alike. It was during this period that popular Hollywood stars became a major influence on fashion trends. Join us for a discussion with Megan Bellister, Nell J. Redfield Curator of Learning and Engagement at the Nevada Museum of Art, on why the Great Depression reshaped 1930s American fashion through practical necessity and Hollywood glamour.