Water'S Edge

The Art of Truman Lowe

Rebecca Head Trautmann (Rebecca Head Trautmann), Cynthia Chavez Lamar, Jo Ortel , Patricia Norby

$89.95 $76.45

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English

Smithsonian Books
21 October 2025

Individual artists, art monographs

Celebrate Native American artist Truman Lowe in this career retrospective featuring 100+ images and intimate insights on his one-of-a-kind sculptures.

Published in conjunction the Smithsonian exhibition—a must-see for fans of contemporary art and Indigenous art

Nationally acclaimed artist Truman Lowe (Ho-Chunk, 1944-2019) was best known for his sculptures that transform wood into water. Working with organic materials such as willow branches and feathers, his artworks evoke the rivers, streams, and waterfalls in Black River Falls, Wisconsin where he was raised, as well as the history and lived experiences of his family and Ho-Chunk community. Water's Edge is a stunning retrospective, featuring nearly five decades of Lowe's sculptures, drawings, and paintings.

The introduction explores the overlapping themes of moving water, woodland structures, memory and knowledge, and landscape and place that permeate Lowe's work. Essays from scholars contextualize the art within his life, career, and heritage, including the repeated expulsion of the Ho-Chunk people from their ancestral homeland and their resolve to return. In deeply moving reflections, fellow artists share their connections to Lowe, his influence on their lives and work, and his impact on American art.

In addition to featuring his breathtaking work, the book includes lesser known drawings and personal photos of his family and studio to offer an intimate look at his influences and process. Highlighting work that is both innovative and rooted in tradition, Water's Edge is a gorgeous tribute to the evolution of one of the sculpting world's greatest practitioners.

By: Rebecca Head Trautmann (Rebecca Head Trautmann)
Foreword by: Cynthia Chavez Lamar
Contributions by: Jo Ortel, Patricia Norby, David Penney
Imprint: Smithsonian Books
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 279mm, Width: 229mm,
Weight: 567g
ISBN: 9781588347190
ISBN 10: 1588347192
Pages: 176
Publication Date: 21 October 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

REBECCA HEAD TRAUTMANN is an assistant curator of contemporary art at the National Museum of the American Indian. The Smithsonian's NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN is an institution of living cultures dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere.