The Brinton Museum Co-Hosts Blackfoot Artist John Pepion

On Wednesday, May June 3, The Brinton Museum and Tongue River Artist Residency (TRAR) announced that they are pleased to co-host the artist John Isaiah Pepion, a Plains Indian graphic artist, muralist, and educator from the Piikani Band of the Blackfoot Confederacy. Coming from a family of artists with pictographic traditions spanning hundreds of years, Pepion continues a lineage of visual storytelling rooted in Blackfeet history and worldview. He is a descendant of Mountain Chief, a Blackfeet leader known for preserving history through winter counts.

Between June 1 and June 22, Pepion will be spending his time between the TRAR studio in Dayton, The Brinton Museum, and meetings with Indigenous artists in the region. Of special interest for his research at The Brinton Museum will be the Winold Reiss collection of Blackfeet portraits, which includes a portrait of Mountain Chief, Pepion’s ancestor. In the To Honor the Plains Nations exhibit, Pepion will especially engage with two important objects, the Blackfeet War Shirt and Grizzly Bear Shirt.

Pepion will present an Artist Talk at the Innominate Coffeehouse & Bakery in Ranchester, on June 19, 5:30 p.m., and an Artist Demonstration at The Brinton Museum, on June 20, from 1 – 3 pm.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Tongue River Artist Residency in bringing John Pepion to The Brinton Museum,” remarked Curatorial Director, Jochen Wierich. “He is an important artist and teacher who will bring much cultural knowledge to our art and Indigenous collections. Through John’s presence here as a visiting artist, we have a unique opportunity to deepen our relationship with the Blackfeet community.

Pepion is best known for his ledger art, a tradition developed by Plains tribes when buffalo hides, once central to painting, became scarce, leading artists to adapt their work to ledger paper from accounting books. His work blends traditional Blackfeet design elements with bold linework and vibrant color, resulting in contemporary illustrations that are instantly recognizable. Pepion considers his art practice ceremonial, a process through which his understanding of family, culture, and place deepens with each piece.

Pepion holds degrees in Art Marketing from United Tribes Technical College and Museum Studies from the Institute of American Indian Arts. His work has been widely exhibited nationally and internationally and is held in major public collections, including the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the Autry Museum of the American West, the Library of Congress, and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art.

Photos courtesy of John Isaiah Pepion and the Brinton Museum