This two-part exhibition unites, for the first time, the stories of Mary Edmonia Lewis, the first internationally acclaimed Black and Anishinaabe sculptor, and that of her brother, Samuel W. Lewis—a Bozeman-based performer, entrepreneur, and community leader who was central to Edmonia’s success.

The first installation of this two-part show brings together a selection of work, some newly commissioned, that celebrates the life and legacy of Samuel W. Lewis, who served as his sister’s benefactor and support system. Samuel’s life in Bozeman between 1868 and 1896 reveals a West shaped by the ideology of Manifest Destiny. The presence of Black settlers, whose participation in westward expansion has yet to be fully recognized, undermined the racial justifications for appropriating Native land. At the same time, Black settlers shared their neighbors’ aspirations to freedom and social mobility.

Los Angeles-based artist Edgar Arceneaux will present a theatrical reconstruction of the siblings’ lives developed with local Bozeman actors, encouraging audiences to reflect upon and imagine the lives of these adventurous figures and to consider broader Black histories of the West. After its presentation, the play will be reconfigured into an installation of painting and video, which will remain on view in the Warehouse space at Tinworks. Additional artists whose work will be presented in the Tinworks Warehouse space, including Terry Adkins, Sonya Clark, Maud Sulter, and Nate Young, will explore how the stories we tell about the past shape present realities.

Chisel & Razor, Act II will be presented from October 1, 2026–April 4, 2027.

Nate Young, In Black Untime No. 14, 2022. Graphite on paper and vellum, archival tape and oak. 26 x 34 in. Image courtesy of the artist and Monique Meloche Gallery. Photo: Bob

In addition to the works on view at Tinworks Art’s campus, Chisel & Razor will be a citywide celebration in partnership with Montana State University College of Arts & Architecture. Stay tuned for further details on programming.

The exhibition is curated by Dr. Melissa Ragain in collaboration with a group of advisors, including Dr. Tiya Miles, 2011 MacArthur Fellow, author, and Professor of History at Harvard University who also serves on Tinworks Art’s Board of Directors; MSU Professor of Native American Studies Dr. Anita Moore-Nall; Montana-based filmmaker Nnamdi Kanaga; MSU professor in Sociology & Anthropology Dr. Jelani Mahiri; Montana-based artist Emily Gonzales; Montana-based writer Dr. Betsy Quammen; and Montana-based writer Dr. Anthony W. Wood.

Tinworks Art gratefully acknowledges the generous support of VIA Art Fund for the production and exhibition of Edmonia Triumphalis by Auriea Harvey, and the Vilcek Foundation for their support of Sunflowers, to follow the wheat by Agnes Denes, an ongoing ecological intervention in Tinworks’ field. Major program support for Tinworks Art is provided by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and Tinworks Founding Director’s Council. Additional support is provided by coal tax revenues allocated to Montana’s Cultural and Aesthetic Projects Trust Fund.