Bunky Echo–Hawk (born 1975) is a

Native American art Visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas encompasses the visual artistic practices of the indigenous peoples of the Americas from ancient times to the present. These include works from South America and North America, which includes C ...

ist and poet who is best known for his

acrylic paint Acrylic paint is a fast-drying paint made of pigment suspended in acrylic polymer emulsion and plasticizers, silicone oils, defoamers, stabilizers, or metal soaps. Most acrylic paints are water-based, but become water-resistant when dry. Depe ...

ings concerning Native American topics and hip-hop culture. He works in a variety of media that include paintings, graphic design, photography, and writing.

Biography

Walter Roy "Bunky" Echo–Hawk Jr. is a member of the

Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma The Pawnee are a Central Plains Indian tribe that historically lived in Nebraska and northern Kansas but today are based in Oklahoma. Today they are the federally recognized Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, who are headquartered in Pawnee, Oklahoma. ...

, and an enrolled member of the

Yakama Nation The Yakama Indian Reservation (spelled Yakima until 1994) is a Native American reservation in Washington state of the federally recognized tribe known as the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. The tribe is made up of Klikitat, ...

. He attended the

Institute of American Indian Arts The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is a public tribal land-grant college in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The college focuses on Native American art. It operates the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA), which is housed in the historic S ...

in the 1990s. He served as the "co-founder and the Executive Director of NVision, a national Native nonprofit that focuses on Native youth development," and he is also a traditional singer and dancer. In 2020, Echo-Hawk was featured in the PBS series ''

American Masters ''American Masters'' is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and those who have left an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the ...

'' for his work on Native rights and environmentalism.

Themes and style

Scholar Olena McLaughlin, writing in the journal ''Transmotion'', categorizes Echo-Hawk's work as follows: "Although it is within the stream of Native Pop, Echo-Hawk’s work leans more towards Pop Surrealism or Lowbrow, a movement that emerged in the 1970s after Pop Art. It engages popular culture, but in a more concrete story-telling way with slightly less ambiguity." In 2011 and beyond, Echo-Hawk collaborated with

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...

to develop Native-inspired apparel through their N-7 and Power of Perseverance Collection.

Personal life and arrest

On October 16, 2021, Echo-Hawk was injured and his 15-year-old daughter Alexie was killed in a head-on crash early morning, as they were driving to the Pawnee Nation for a ceremonial tribal dance in Oklahoma. On January 10, 2022, Bunky Echo-Hawk was arrested for "lewd or indecent acts to children under 16." A girl reported to a Pawnee County DHS worker that "she was repeatedly touched inappropriately by Echo-Hawk, 46, between 'from the time she was 7 or 8 until 11 or 12 years old'." His

preliminary hearing Within some criminal justice, criminal justice systems, a preliminary hearing, preliminary examination, preliminary inquiry, evidentiary hearing or probable cause hearing is a proceeding, after a criminal complaint has been filed by the prosecuto ...

was scheduled for March 15, 2022.

Public collections

Spencer Museum of Art The Spencer Museum of Art is an art museum operated by the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Spencer Museum seeks to "...present its collection as a living archive that motivates object-c ...

National Museum of the American Indian The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. The museum has three ...

Exhibitions

* "Ramp It Up: Skateboard Culture in Native America,"

, 2009 * Founder's Day Performance, Live audience intervention painting, Feb. 1, 2010,

Willamette University Willamette University is a private liberal arts college with locations in Salem and Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest college in the Western United States. Originally named the Oregon Institute, the school was an unaffiliated ...

* "Bunky Echo-Hawk: Modern Warrior,"

Field Museum The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...

, 2013 * Shows in Minneapolis, Chicago, New York and Greensboro, NC

References

External links

bunkyechohawk.com
official website
Oral History Interview with Bunky Echo-Hawk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Echo-Hawk, Bunky 1975 births Living people 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans Institute of American Indian Arts alumni Naropa University alumni Native American painters Pawnee people Yakama 20th-century American painters 21st-century American painters 20th-century American male artists 21st-century American male artists People from Toppenish, Washington Painters from Washington (state)