Eiteljorg Musem opens exhibit showcasing diverse religious influences

The New- York Historical Society is featuring a new art exhibition, “Acts of Faith: Religion and the American West,” at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art April 20-Aug. 4. The exhibition explores how diverse faiths have shaped the cultures of the American West and how the West has impacted people’s beliefs. “In the ‘Acts of Faith’ exhibition, visitors can see the beauty, heartbreak, triumph and struggle of a range of religious expressions and experiences throughout the American West,” said Jessica Nelson, guest curator and former director of Eiteljorg’s religion and cultural initiatives. Robert Walter Weir (1803–1889) Sagoyewatha, or “Red Jacket” (ca. 1758–1830), 1828 Oil on canvas, reproduction New-York Historical Society, Gift of Winthrop Chanler, 1893.1 The exhibit explores many of the religious beliefs and spiritual practices of the people who lived in or moved to the American West, focusing on a 200-year period that connects to the present. Through artwork, artifacts and panels that show historic sites and scenes, “Acts of Faith” weaves together a wide variety of stories including Native American religious movements, protestant missionaries, Catholic communism, formerly enslaved African American migrants who started new lives in the West and Chinese immigrants honoring their ancestral religious...