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(Sept. 19, 2006) – An exhibition of 16 portraits of St. Augustine Indian Mission students by award-winning photographer Don Doll, S.J., will be on display beginning Sunday, Sept. 24 at the Center. Titled “A Timely Encounter: Children of St. Augustine Indian Mission,” the exhibition celebrates students educated at the historic mission founded by St. Katharine Drexel in 1909 on the Winnebago Reservation in Northeast, Neb. Children are taught traditional language and culture along with a solid core of academic basics at St. Augustine. The 20-by-30-inch color portraits show children in traditional Native regalia. Fr. Doll shot the photographs in May at St. Augustine for the 2007 edition of the Mission’s award-winning calendar. The calendar, scheduled for release in late September, will be available at the interpretive center.
The photo exhibition is the first of a two-part project produced by the Center in cooperation with St. Augustine Indian Mission, Fr. Doll and Creighton University’s Native American Studies Program. Part II will bring a commissioned exhibition of St. Augustine children’s art to the Center. The exhibition will involve all students at the school which enrolls more than 100 children “A Timely Encounter: Children of St. Augustine Indian Mission,” an exhibition of 16 portraits by award-winning photographer Don Doll, S.J., of Creighton University, opens Sept. 24 at the Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center. The historic mission on the Winnebago Reservation was founded in 1909 by St. Katharine Drexel. of varied faiths and heritages. Part II will open at 1:30 p.m. Oct. 29 with a gallery talk by Fr. Doll, Professor of Photojournalism at Creighton University where he holds the Charles and Mary Heider Endowed Jesuit Chair. “The interpretive center’s post-Bicentennial Native cultures focus opens the door to so many opportunities for enlightenment about Native people in our area,” says Fr. Dave Korth, Director of St. Augustine Indian Mission. “It’s an opportunity to show visitors from Siouxland and beyond our children’s gifts and talents. For our children, it’s an opportunity to foster pride in their heritage.” “A Timely Encounter” is the second exhibition of Don Doll, S.J., photographs at the interpretive center. His “Vision Quest: Men, Women and Sacred Sites of the Sioux Nation” ran from May 14 through Sept. 4 and was seen by more than 21,000 visitors. Fr. Doll has received the Kodak Crystal Eagle Award for Impact in Photojournalism in recognition of his work with Native people. He also has received the Nikon “World Understanding through Photography” award. He was named the 2006 Nebraska Artist of the Year by the Nebraska Arts Council. Fr. Doll’s work has been featured in National Geographic magazine and a number of “Day in the Life” books, including America, California, Italy, Ireland, Passage to Vietnam, and Christmas in America. His photographs also have been published in “Crying for a Vision” (Morgan and Morgan Publishers) and “Vision Quest: Men, Women and Sacred Sites of the Sioux Nation” (Crown Publishers). He appears in the “Vision Quest” DVD produced by Nebraska Public TV. He has photographed the work of Jesuits assisting Tsunami victims in India and Sri Lanka, and the educational work of the Jesuit Refugee Service in Uganda and Southern Sudan. St. Augustine Indian Mission’s calendars for 2005 and 2006 also featured portraits by Fr. Doll. The calendars were designed by Pat Osborne of Mutual of Omaha. They won 2006 Best of Show awards at the Heartland Print Gallery annual competition. The Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center, a private, non-profit institution, was built and is sustained by Missouri River Historical Development, Inc. (MRHD). It opened in September 2002 with a focus on commemorating the explorers’ time in the present-day Sioux City area. Since then, it has welcomed almost 250,000 visitors who have come from every state and more than two dozen other countries. As the Lewis & Clark Bicentennial (2003-2006) concludes, the Center moves forward with the permanent mission of “Commemorating a history of encounters.” That history begins with encounters among Native people who lived here long before the expedition arrived. It continues with encounters between Natives and non-Natives. It looks forward to commemorating and interpreting encounters among people who have come to this area from every part of the globe. The “encounters” theme is inspiring a spectrum of post-Bicentennial opportunities to promote dialogue, harmony and understanding among all people in this region. The Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center is located on the Missouri Riverfront, exit 149 off I-29. It is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, closed Monday. Admission, all programs, exhibits and activities are free. For more information, call 712-224-5242 or www.siouxcitylcic.com
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“The St. Augustine portraits further the
interpretive center’s post-Bicentennial
Native cultures focus in a beautiful way,”
says Marcia Poole, interpretive center
director. “The pictures can be appreciated
on many levels. Perhaps, ultimately, they
will inspire discussion of a future that
serves the best interests of all children.”