David Bradley

Having played a significant role in the advancement of Native American rights and art, David Bradley is known for his paintings and sculptures that often convey a political message concerning Native Americans. He often parodies art historical or "pop culture" icons, such as the Mona Lisa, Whistler's Mother, and American Gothic. Bradley was born in Eureka, California on March 8, 1954 and spent most of his childhood in Minneapolis and on the White Earth Ojibwa Reservation in Chippewa, Minnesota. He spent two years at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota before taking a break from school and joining the Peace Corps for two years. After returning from the Peace Corps, he attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, where he graduated first in his class with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts. He also studied at the University of Arizona and the College of Santa Fe. He has received numerous awards and fellowships, including the Southwestern Association of Indian Art Fellowship in 1980 and the Minnesota Chippewa Art Award for Merit in Art in 1979. His work has been featured in exhibitions at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C., the Plains Indian Museum in Wyoming, the Heard Museum in Arizona, the Museum of Fine Arts in New Mexico, the Museum of Indian Arts and Cultures in New Mexico, the Plains Art Museum in South Dakota, the Southwest Museum in California, the North Dakota Museum of Art in North Dakota, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts in Minnesota, and the American Indian Art Invitational in Lima, Peru.