2000-2001 Interns

Edsel Brown

2000–2001 Museum Collections Management Intern

Edsel Brown (Navajo), from Tsaile, Arizona, has been selected as the 2000-2001 SAR Fellow in Collections Management at the Indian Arts Research Center. Edsel has a wonderful variety of skills and experience. He currently holds the position of Museum Curator at the Ned A. Hatathli Museum at Din College, where he has worked for the past seven years with increasing levels of responsibility. In addition to a range of duties from curation and exhibits to tours and outreach (he is one of only two staff members), Edsel teaches courses at Din College in Navajo pottery and in moccasin making. He holds an AFA in Two-dimensional Art from the Institute of American Indian Arts. In addition, he attended Northern Arizona University, where he took courses primarily in art; and Din College, where his coursework was in Navajo studies and education. He is a talented artist in both painting and printmaking; he also works in silversmithing and sculpture.

Edsel believes that the fellowship will allow him the opportunity not only to enhance his existing, largely self-taught museum skills, but also to develop new ones from basic conservation techniques to computer cataloging. He has a strong vision of the role of tribal museums and their relationships to the communities they serve, and wishes to balance Western ideas concerning collections management with traditional Navajo beliefs regarding items that may still be in use. His sincerity and dedication to his work are commendable.