HWS News
17 March 2025 • Arts HWS Acquires Basket Belly Sculpture through Art Intern Purchase
Students have selected a powerful new sculpture by Native Haudenosaunee artist Natasha Smoke Santiago to join Hobart and William Smith’s permanent art collection.
As part of the Art Internship Acquisition class, Mia Tetrault ’25 and Azure Sage ’27 carefully chose a new piece to be added to the Collections of Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Titled Basket Belly, the striking work was sculpted by Native Haudenosaunee artist Natasha Smoke Santiago.
Born in Rochester, N.Y., and now residing in Akwesasne, Mohawk Nation Territory, Santiago frequently explores the theme of carrying life in her art. Basket Belly is a cast of an Indigenous pregnant woman’s belly, symbolizing the connections to Haudenosaunee creation stories—where Sky Woman, pregnant when she fell from the sky world, brought life into existence. The sculpture’s deep purple hue, combined with the subject’s upright relaxed posture and exposed breasts, expresses both confidence and cultural pride of motherhood. The basket weaving detail on her stomach references the Indigenous weaving techniques that have been passed down and preserved through generations, traditionally from mothers to daughters.
Tetrault, a double major in Media and Society and American Studies, and a minor in Critical Museum Studies, was drawn to the internship to better understand how museums and institutions acquire new artworks. “By adding [Santiago’s] work to the Collection, we hope that it will provide greater visibility and appreciation to Indigenous cultures,” she says. “I’m excited to see where this experience takes me as I aspire to pursue a career in the museum world after graduating.”
Sage, an Art History major, emphasized the thoughtful research behind the acquisition process. “This class reinforced my view of art as a vehicle for representation and my understanding of the importance of appreciating diverse works,” Sage says. “ARTH 204 has been such a wonderful experience. I have learned so much about maintaining collections and promoting appreciation for artistic expression.”
They also notably recognize that the addition of Basket Belly honors the rich cultural heritage of Indigenous communities that lived on the land that HWS is situated.
The class is taught by Meghan L. Jordan, the Clarence A. Davis ’48 Visual Arts Curator for the Davis Gallery at Houghton House.
"The objective of ARTH 204 is to identify a weakness in the Art Collection and strengthen it with the purchase of an artwork," says Jordan. "After researching the collection, Mia and Az recognized that we lacked artwork by an indigenous New York state artist. I am so proud of them for discovering this weakness and finding Santiago’s work for us to purchase. The sculpture is on view until April 12 in the Davis Gallery in Recent Art Acquisitions and I look forward to showcasing it more in the future."
Top: Mia Tetrault '25 and Azure Sage '27 pose with Basket Belly inside the Davis Gallery at Houghton House.
