Campus Connection

UWL Art Department secures grant to promote Indigenous art, cultural literacy 

UW-La Crosse is making strides in supporting the past, present and future of Wisconsin’s Indigenous artists. 

In 2022, the UWL Center for the Arts was dedicated to the late Truman Lowe, a world-renowned Indigenous artist who graduated from UWL with a bachelor’s degree in art education in 1969. 

Now, thanks to a grant awarded to the School of Visual & Performing Arts (VPA) by the Wisconsin Arts Board, the UWL Art Department plans to expand efforts to educate students and community members about the work of contemporary Indigenous artists.  

The inspiration for the grant stems from an experience in February 2020, when UWL Gallery Director Deborah-Eve Lombard hosted an exhibition featuring the work of Ho-Chunk artist, Truman Lowe. The exhibition "Changing Currents: The Art of Truman Lowe," profoundly impacted those who attended, including Associate Professor of Art Education Lisa Lenarz. 

"Seeing Lowe’s works in person and learning about his life and heritage was transformative," Lenarz says. "It highlighted the need for educational programming that increases knowledge and familiarity with contemporary Indigenous artists, especially among art teachers who can share this knowledge with their students."

The naming of UWL’s fine arts building as the Truman T. Lowe Center for the Arts further solidified Lenarz’s commitment to promoting Indigenous art. The new $6,000 Wisconsin Arts Board grant will realize this vision by supporting a series of educational programs, introducing both teachers and students to the richness and diversity of contemporary Indigenous art. 

“We’re currently planning a series of youth, teacher and community workshops to provide multiple inroads to learning about contemporary Indigenous artists and the complexities of culture within their work through expression, exploration and artmaking,” Lenarz says.  

Potential offerings include artist talks (in person or video), exhibitions, lectures, seminars, field trips, and hands-on workshops.  

“Knowing that attendees may be able to leave an event knowing the name of a Ho-Chunk or other native artist is exciting,” Lenarz says. 

The initiative aligns with the Wisconsin Arts Board’s mission to promote arts education, cultural understanding and community arts development across the state. By fostering partnerships with Indigenous artists and providing educational opportunities for teachers and students, UWL’s VPA aims to enhance cultural literacy and appreciation for First Nation cultures within the La Crosse community and beyond. 

“Most often, learning in the visual arts centers solely on ‘creating,’” Lenarz explains. “By weaving cultural aspects into teaching and learning through artist exemplars, such as Ho-Chunk artist Truman Lowe, learners widen their capacity for creating through also connecting to another culture.” 

The project will kick off with a session on Truman Lowe’s life and work at the Wisconsin Art Education Association fall conference in Black River Falls in October. Additional events, including workshops for younger audiences in the spring of 2025, are planned to ensure broad community involvement. 

“We believe this project will be a meaningful and powerful impetus for additional initiatives that will build on this project and extend into the future long after the grant work is complete,” Lenarz says. 

Community members interested in supporting or participating in this initiative can contact Lisa Lenarz at llenarz@uwlax.edu or (608) 785-8235.