ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Dyani White Hawk's LISTEN at Nasher Museum Explores Indigenous Languages

exhibition · 2026-05-05

Dyani White Hawk's video installation, LISTEN (2020–ongoing), is currently exhibited at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University until July 5, 2026. This eight-channel piece showcases Indigenous women articulating their languages within their tribal territories, presented without subtitles. To engage with each speaker, viewers must move physically, highlighting the concept of embodied listening. Featured in the installation are Leiha Peters (Seneca) from the Tonawanda Seneca Nation Reservation, Lucinda Polk (Quechan/Kwatsáan) from the Yuma Quechan Reservation, and Lorraine Ryan German (Sisseton Whapeton Dakota). The exhibition poses the question: 'How many languages can you identify by sound?'

Key facts

  • Dyani White Hawk is Sičánǧu Lakota.
  • LISTEN is an eight-channel HD video installation with directional sound.
  • The work was created in 2020 and is ongoing.
  • It is in the collection of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University.
  • The installation features Indigenous women speaking their languages on their tribal homelands.
  • No subtitles are provided; viewers must move to hear each speaker.
  • The exhibition runs through July 5, 2026.
  • The video of Leiha Peters includes the sound of a bullfrog.

Entities

Artists

  • Dyani White Hawk
  • Razelle Benally
  • Leiha Peters
  • Lucinda Polk
  • Lorraine Ryan German

Institutions

  • Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University
  • Bockley Gallery
  • Various Small Fires

Locations

  • Durham
  • North Carolina
  • United States
  • Tonawanda Seneca Nation Reservation
  • New York
  • Yuma Quechan Reservation
  • California

Sources