Collections Overview
The Poeh Museum currently curates two collections: a permanent collection, which holds Pueblo material and cultural objects; and an archive, which contains historic and contemporary, documentary images of Pueblo culture, artists, and the Pueblo of Pojoaque community. Both collections are available online by application.
Permanent Collection
In response to a concern by the Pueblo of Pojoaque Tribal Council to preserve art and material culture, the Poeh Museum opened in 1991 with the Poeh Center as the parent organization. The Poeh Center’s advisory committee, which includes cultural leaders from the six Tewa-speaking Pueblos, provides expertise crucial to The Pueblo of Pojoaque’s revitalization. The museum’s mission is to “enrich the life of Pueblo communities and educate all people about the rich legacy and vibrant present of Pueblo cultures.”
With this in mind, the Poeh Museum collects works by contemporary Pueblo artists in order to represent Pueblo art as a continuum of material culture. The artists are represented in the museum’s permanent collections and are recognized during the museum’s quarterly interpretive exhibitions. The collection also includes historical art and cultural objects spanning a thousand years of Pueblo culture. The permanent collection numbers more than 600 objects and includes paintings, jewelry, pottery, textiles, and sculpture dating from before European contact to the present.
Photo Archive
The Poeh Museum holds an estimated 10,000 photographs ranging from early Edward S. Curtis prints to snapshots of contemporary Pueblo life. Approximately 5,000 of these images have been catalogued and digitized, with the remainder expected to be completed by the end of 2009.
Requests for loans and research access for either collection should be directed to the museum director by phone at 505.455.1110.
Online Database
Thanks in part to funding by the National Endowment for the Arts, portions of our permanent collection and photo archive databases can now be browsed online.
There are currently more than 600 objects in the museum’s collection available for research and study, and nearly 5,000 images that detail the progress of the Pueblo’s economic development, cultural events, portraits of Pueblo tribal members, and artists connected to the museum collection, providing the public with a wealth of information of past and current activities in the pueblo.