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Pageantry opens the Museum of the American Indian
September 21, 2004

Julia Sabori of the Mexica Aztec Tribe takes part in the Native Nations Procession as part of the opening ceremony of the National Museum of American Indian. The museum will stay open for almost 30 hours, followed by a six-day First Americans Festival. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Washington, D.C. — (AP) - A colorful Native Nations procession heralded the opening Tuesday of the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of the American Indian, the newest addition to the historical treasure-trove dotting the National Mall.

A group of five White Mountain Apache Indians from White River, Ariz., drew a crowd with their exotic dress. Four had their chests painted black with white lettering while the fifth was painted white with black lettering. Pine needles were wrapped around their arms and waists, and wooden headgear reached two feet above their heads, which were covered in masks. As they danced, metal balls around their shoes added to the sounds of an accompanying drummer.

	Museum of the American Indian

Nearby, Aztec Indians from San Francisco danced with headfeathers that reached as high as six feet above their heads.

Onlookers cheered as the procession made its way to the new museum near the U.S. Capitol, and the air was filled with the smell of burned sage and the sounds of drums, bells and music.

The 250,000-square-foot museum is the new home of the largest and most diverse collection of Indian art and artifacts in the world.

Among those celebrating was Nicole Soulier, 19, a Ojibwa Indian from Bad River, Wis., who wore a blue dress with 365 metal "jingles" - one for each day of the year - and an eagle's feather on her head.

"It's very important to represent where I came from, to celebrate with all the other nations," she said.

	Minnesota limestone exterior

Leading the procession was museum director Richard West, wearing a Cheyenne Indian headdress, along with Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and Lawrence Small, the Smithsonian secretary.

In the afternoon, the museum opened to the public, and musicians, dancers and storytellers were to begin the First Americans Festival, which will last the rest of the week.

Deanette Ives, vice chairman of the Port Sklallam Gamble Tribe near Kingston, Wash., said she took her 14-year-old daughter out of school to attend the ceremony. "I thought it was important to share this historic moment," said Ives, wearing a black and red shall embroidered with the tribe's logo, a killer whale. "This is a time she'll remember for the rest of her life."

On Monday, hundreds of people already were milling about the museum to get an early peek. "At last we're getting some kind of recognition as Indian people," said Lawrence Orcutt, from the Yurok tribe in northern California.

Dave Anderson, who heads the Bureau of Indian Affairs, said the museum will allow Indians to open a new chapter in the United States.

It's very important to represent where I came from, to celebrate with all the other nations. - Nicole Soulier, Ojibwe from Bad River, Wis.

"I look at this whole museum opening as an opportunity for healing, for optimism," he said.

Missing from the opening festivities, however, was the architect who designed the stunning tan building, layered in swooping levels of Minnesota limestone rounded to depict the curves of the Earth, sun and moon.

Douglas J. Cardinal, a Canadian, was hired as architect in 1993, but he wound up in a dispute with the architectural firm that he subcontracted for, GBQC of Philadelphia, claiming he was losing money.

The Smithsonian failed to settle the differences between the two parties and fired both in 1998. Another architectural team finished the work.

Two months ago, West wrote Cardinal a three-page letter, asking him to attend Tuesday's opening ceremonies and offering to pay for Cardinal's travel and accommodations.

But Cardinal, a Blackfeet Indian, turned down the offer after consulting with family members and tribal elders.

	Art on display

"It was not a gift but professional work for which I should be reimbursed," wrote Cardinal, who claims he is owed $1 million for the work he did on the museum.

Responded Smithsonian spokesman Thomas Sweeney: "The Smithsonian Institution paid Mr. Cardinal up to the time of the termination."

Cardinal's design is unlike any other structure in Washington's wealth of monuments and museum. Built at a cost of $214 million, the sweeping lines represent a communing with nature as the country's tribal peoples did. It houses 8,000 objects from across the Western Hemisphere. Four million visitors a year are expected for the museum's movies and music; paintings, photographs and sculptures; masks, weapons and animals; jewelry and medals; even food and plants.

Cardinal, 70, said he's seen photos of the museum and that the "broad strokes" are consistent with his original design.

"I would have wanted every note to carry the detail," he added. "The play between the glass and the stone. I usually recess the glass into stone so you can't see the frames."

(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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