The Block Museum of Art at Northwestern University proudly announces it takes a long time to stay here: Paintings by Jordan Ann Craig, the first major solo exhibition in the Midwest region of work by Jordan Ann Craig (Northern Cheyenne). Opening January 25, 2025, this exhibition will feature seven large-scale abstract paintings, all displayed together for the first time.
Craig’s practice is bold and abstract, with innovative use of color, line, and form. Her compositions also reflect a profound engagement with Northern Cheyenne aesthetic traditions that is rooted in extensive research. Craig draws upon Indigenous art forms such as beadwork, pottery, and textiles. Her paintings are deeply inspired by museum collections and archives as well as the dynamic landscapes of the Southwestern United States, where she lives and works.
“Jordan Ann Craig’s paintings invite a slow, contemplative engagement through their complex combinations of color, geometry, and form. We can meditate on the visible surfaces, on the Indigenous histories of abstraction that inspire their patterns, and on our own personal connections to what we see and the often humorous, sometimes profound titles that she gives each work.”
Kathleen Bickford Berzock, Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs, Block Museum of Art
The exhibition’s evocative title, it takes a long time to stay here, is drawn from the poem spinning air by m.s. RedCherries (Northern Cheyenne). The title underscores themes of reflection, grounding, and interconnectedness, and emphasizes the reward that viewers will derive from spending extended time with each painting. Craig’s enigmatic painting titles, intricate patterns, and rich palette offer an immersive viewing experience, where the meaning of each piece unfolds through deep observation and personal interpretation.
Craig describes her work as a continuation of her family’s artistic explorations. “Growing up, my parents gave us art supplies instead of toys,” she shares. “We never knew what kind of monsters we’d become with them. My dad built furniture and painted, and my mom was constantly crafting and creating — it was a competition to see who could make the best project. Now, that sense of play and precision carries into my paintings.”
The exhibition will be presented concurrently with Woven Being: Art for Zhegagoynak/Chicagoland, a landmark exhibition that foregrounds Indigenous voices, histories, and methodologies through the lens of Chicagoland region and its Native communities.
In conjunction with it takes a long time to stay here, The Block Museum also announces the acquisition of one of Craig’s works for its permanent collection. Titled Sharp Tongue: Used to Cut Deep (2024), the acquisition will directly support teaching and learning across Northwestern. “Jordan Ann Craig’s work brings a powerful new voice to our collection,” said Lisa Corrin, Ellen Philips Katz Executive Director of The Block Museum. “We are excited to make one of these significant paintings a part of Northwestern’s learning environment. It will provide students and faculty with opportunities to engage with Indigenous artistic traditions, concepts of abstraction, and questions of identity and place.”
Exhibition Keynote:
A Conversation with Jordan Ann Craig and m.s. RedCherries
Wednesday, February 26, 2025 | 6:00 PM | Free and open to all
RSVP Requested
Celebrate the exhibition with a keynote event featuring Jordan Ann Craig in conversation with Northern Cheyenne poet m.s. RedCherries. The keynote conversation will offer a unique opportunity to hear from two Northern Cheyenne cultural leaders, exploring themes of identity, grounding, and creative expression that are central to Craig’s artistic practice. Their conversation will be moderated by Jordan Poorman Cocker, 2021–25 Terra Foundation Guest Co-Curator of Woven Being: Art for Zhegagoynak/Chicagoland and the Curator of Indigenous Art at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
Credits:
it takes a long time to stay here is curated by Kathleen Bickford Berzock, Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs, Janet Dees, former Steven and Lisa Munster Tananbaum Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Jacqueline Lopez, 2024–25 Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellow at The Block Museum of Art. The exhibition is partially supported by the Alsdorf Gallery Endowment and a grant from the Illinois Arts Council. Additional generous support is provided by the Alumnae of Northwestern University. Support for the publication has been provided by Hales Gallery, New York.
About the Artist
Jordan Ann Craig (b. 1992 San Jose, CA) is a Northern Cheyenne artist living and working in Pojoaque Valley, New Mexico. She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and received her B.A. in Studio Art and Psychology from Dartmouth College. She is the recipient of several fellowships and residencies including from the Golden Foundation for the Arts; the School for Advanced Research; the Institute for American Indian Arts; the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program; the Ucross Foundation; East London Printmakers Project; Cork Printmakers International; and the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica. Her works are in the collection of the Guggenheim Museum, New York; Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH; Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art, Roswell, NM; IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Santa Fe, NM; Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Overland Park, KS; and Forge Collection, Taghkanic, NY, among others.
Header Image: Jordan Ann Craig (Northern Cheyenne, born 1992). Sharp Tongue: Used to Cut Deep (2024). Acrylic on canvas, 70 x 70 x 2 1/2 inches. Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University. Julie and Lawrence Bernstein Family Art Acquisition Fund purchase. Image courtesy of the artist. Photograph by Nicholas Valdes.
