About the Project
In response to the work of artist Jaune Quick-to-See-Smith (Enrolled Salish, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation) and St. Louis’ State Streets Neighborhood, Counterpublic has created a series of “Erased History Markers” to be installed at eleven intersections where specific Native American Tribal Nations and the State names that displaced them meet, such as Osage Street and Missouri Avenue. Organized by Counterpublic 2023 curator Risa Puleo, each sign includes a brief description of the displacement of the Tribal Nation from that place, as well as links to current Tribal websites, additional treaty information, and Counterpublic’s website.
Intersections identified as part of this project are Osage & Missouri, Dakota & Minnesota, Chippewa & Minnesota, Chippewa & Wisconsin, Chippewa & Illinois, Winnebago & Wisconsin, Cherokee & Tennessee, Miami & Illinois, Potomac & Virginia, Miami & Ohio, and Miami & Indiana. These permanent signs aim to make apparent the histories of dispossession referenced by the intersection of street names in the State Streets neighborhood and are inspired by artist Jaune Quick-to-See Smith’s map painting commissioned by Counterpublic and newly acquired and now on view at the St. Louis Art Museum.
Counterpublic aims to connect art with generational change, and the Erased History Markers is one of several permanent commissions. Working with private property owners, five of the signs have been installed and permissions are being sought for the remaining six intersections.
Visit the Erased History Markers
01 Erased History Marker: Cherokee + Tennessee
Address St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
Erased History Marker On view
02 Erased History Marker: Chippewa + Illinois
Address St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
Erased History Marker On view
03 Erased History Marker: Potomac + Virginia
Address St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
Erased History Marker On view
04 Erased History Marker: Winnebago + Wisconsin
Address St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
Erased History Marker On view
05 Erased History Marker: Osage + Missouri
Address St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
Erased History Marker On view
On May 3rd, 2024, the Jaune Quick-to-See Smith exhibition opened at Saint Louis Art Museum. The exhibition highlighted Jaune Quick-to-See Smith’s works from the Museum collection. As one of the most celebrated contemporary artists of Indigenous heritage, this exhibition spanned Smith’s career and drew attention to her work in St. Louis.
The exhibition marked the SLAM debut for State Names Map: Cahokia and Trade Canoe: Cahokia, a painting and sculpture Smith created in 2023 for the Counterpublic triennial in St. Louis. Based on two of her long-running series, the painting and sculpture respond to deep histories of cross-cultural trade and Indigenous displacement associated with the St. Louis region. Early pastels by Smith and a series of prints from the mid-1990s, many of which the artist made in St. Louis at Washington University’s Island Press, provide a long view of the artist’s career.
Joined by her son, artist Neal Ambrose Smith, on Saturday, May 4th, 2024, in the Museum’s Farrell Auditorium, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith spoke about her wide-ranging artistic practice, highlighting the two artworks the Museum recently acquired.