Panûpünüwügai (Living Light)

Cara Romero’s storytelling leads us into the future. Each image is a doorway to an even more profound level of imagination than thought possible and remakes a history that includes us: the grandchildren, the great-grandchildren, and those who follow, generation-by-generation.

—  Joy Harjo

Throughout her renowned creative practice, Cara Romero has brilliantly challenged dominant narratives of Indigenous decline and erasure, disrupting preconceived notions about what it means to be a Native American. The artist’s first monograph, Panûpünüwügai (Living Light), explores the ways in which her images simultaneously acknowledge the injustices of colonialism while centering the humanity and vitality of her Indigenous collaborators, inviting audiences to engage in transformative dialogues.

Published in conjunction with the artist’s first solo museum exhibition of the same name, this comprehensive publication highlights the breadth of Romero’s practice, bringing together a dynamic selection of images from across her diverse bodies of work.

Organized into thematic sections, the works are accompanied by essays from notable scholars, including Karen Kramer, Curator of Native American and Oceanic Art and Culture, Peabody Essex Museum; Suzan Shown Harjo; Joy Harjo; Jordan Poorman Cocker, Curator of Indigenous Art, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art; Felicia Garcia, Education Programs Manager at the Santa Ynez Chumash Museum and Cultural Center; Kate Nelson, an award-winning journalist; and Jami Powell, Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs & Curator of Indigenous Art, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth.

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