Bunky Echo–Hawk (born 1975) is a
Native American artist and poet who is best known for his
acrylic paintings 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. Th ...
, and an enrolled member of the Yakama Nation. He attended the Institute of American Indian Arts 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'' 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 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."[ 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
* National Museum of the American Indian
Exhibitions
* "Ramp It Up: Skateboard Culture in Native America," National Museum of the American Indian, 2009
* Founder's Day Performance, Live audience intervention painting, Feb. 1, 2010, Willamette University
* "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)