In 2021, staff and leadership at the Hearst Museum developed a new strategic plan to guide the organization’s future. As part of this process, the Hearst recognized a need to prioritize repatriation under NAGPRA & other laws and policies, as well as to build and repair relationships with Native communities.

Last month, the Hearst Museum & UC Berkeley worked with leadership of the Wiyot Tribe to repatriate ancestors and belongings which had been held by the University for the last 70 years. This repatriation is part of broader changes happening on campus.

The Hearst Museum acknowledges that there remains much work to do. Faculty Director Lauren Kroiz shared that “We’re guided by principles articulated in the UC Office of the President’s Policy acknowledging that ‘as long as Human Remains and Cultural Items remain in the University’s Control, healing and reparation will be incomplete.'”

By prioritizing full repatriation, the Hearst also hopes to open the door to new opportunities and partnerships, such as the growing collaboration with Cafe Ohlone. In addition, Hearst staff have been engaging in introspective diversity, equity and inclusion work through a year-long program with OF/BY/FOR ALL, the launch of a series focused on institutional transparency, and collaboration with campus consultants.

The Hearst appreciates your continued support during this period of critical change and looks forward to welcoming back students, researchers, and the public in the coming year.

Resources & Further Reading

• Repatriation & Traditional Care
• UC’s Native American Cultural Affiliation and Repatriation Policy
• UC Berkeley NAGPRA Update, December 2021
• Looking Back, Moving Forward: Cafe Ohlone at UC Berkeley
• Community Research & Partnerships
• California Language Archive

California Language Archive

Honoring Ira Stuart Jacknis (1952-2021)

It is with great sadness that we note the sudden passing of our esteemed colleague Ira Stuart Jacknis.  Jacknis passed away peacefully at home on September 29, 2021 after a brief illness.  He is survived by his brother Ian Jacknis and sister Jocelyn Jacknis, both of New York.

Born in New York City on March 25, 1952, Jacknis went on to enjoy a long and prolific career as a cultural anthropologist at several of the most prominent anthropology museums in the United States.  He earned his B.A. in Anthropology and Art History, summa cum laude, from Yale University in 1974, and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Chicago in 1976 and 1989. While completing his Ph.D., he worked as a curator at the Brooklyn Museum, and in 1991, he co-authored his first book, Objects of Myth and Memory, based on the museum’s American Indian art collection. 

In August of that same year, Jacknis joined the staff of the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology (then the Lowie Museum of Anthropology) at the University of California, Berkeley as a Research Anthropologist. During his tenure at the Hearst Museum, he taught courses in museum anthropology, mentored countless students and aspiring museum professionals, curated dozens of exhibits, and completed a staggering number of publications based on his research. Jacknis possessed an unparalleled knowledge of the Hearst Museum’s collections and generously shared that knowledge with students, fellow staff members, and colleagues.  A scholar of many subjects, he specialized in the history of anthropology, museum anthropology, and the arts, cultures, and customs of the Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast, American Southwest, and California. 

Among his major exhibits at the Hearst Museum were Back Roads to Far Towns: Folk Art of Rural Japan, September 1994 – June 1995 (and resulting catalogue), The Carver’s Art of the Indians of Northwestern California, August 1995 – February 1996 (and associated documentary film), Food in California Indian Culture, September 1997 – January 2000 (and resulting publication by the same name), and In the Land of Kings: Aspects of Artistry in Rajasthan, India, September 2006 – July 2007. He was particularly fond of Visual Anthropology and helped secure grant funds from several, prominent foundations to support the preservation of the museum’s ethnographic film and audio recordings. In addition to curating numerous photographic exhibits at the Hearst Museum, he joyfully participated for many years in the selection of applicants for the Dorothea Lange Fellowship for documentary photography at UC Berkeley.

Throughout his career, he presented over 60 public lectures, wrote a total of 7 books and manuscripts, served as a reviewer for dozens of academic publishers and institutions, and published over 100 articles, reviews, and book introductions. Additional publications of note include The Storage Box of Tradition: Kwakiutl Art, Anthropologists, and Museums, 1881-1981 (2002) and a forthcoming book on the history of miniature dioramas in anthropological museums.

In 2021, Ira fully retired from the Hearst Museum after 30 years of service with multiple research projects, articles, and manuscripts awaiting completion. In addition to his work at the Hearst Museum, he served as a Research Associate for the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution, and the American Museum of Natural History.  

Despite the impressive number of accomplishments and accolades noted here, his contributions to the field of anthropology and the influences he had on generations of scholars are beyond measure. It is incomprehensible to think of the Hearst Museum without Ira Jacknis and he will be dearly missed.

–The Staff of the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology

Private services were held with his family in New York. A public memorial service will be held at the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology on Thursday, December 9 from 1-2:30 p.m..  Letters of condolences for the Jacknis family or Hearst Museum staff may be sent to the following addresses:

pahma-execdirector@berkeley.edu

or

Donations in his memory may be directed to the Hearst Museum.  

If sending a check, please make payable to:

The Hearst Museum Fund (FU1053)
Note: IMO Ira Jacknis

Mail Checks to:

University of California, Berkeley
Donor and Gift Services
1995 University Avenue, Ste 400
Berkeley, CA 94704-1070

A huge thank you to all who participated in UC Berkeley’s Big Give.

The Hearst Museum is incredibly grateful to have raised $49,183 in just 24 hours! Your generous contributions support community events, online exhibits, opportunities for students, and the care and preservation of collections from around the globe.

It’s not too late to contribute! Whether you are a student or a life-long learner, live nearby or far away, your participation and support help cultures connect. 

https://give.berkeley.edu/fund/FU1053000

Dear Hearst Museum Friends and Supporters,

On January 26th, the University of California, Berkeley announced that Kroeber Hall, the building in which our gallery is located, was officially un-named. A summary of the statement provided by Chancellor Carol Christ can be found here, as well as additional information on Alfred Kroeber, best known for his anthropological studies of California’s Indigenous people. While we work to update our public and internal records to reflect this name change, we wish to express our support for the university’s decision and extend our gratitude to the Building Name Review Committee and the many contributors to the review process.

In addition to being the former namesake of our building, Alfred Kroeber led what is now known as the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology from 1908 to 1946. Our museum acknowledges that we inherit Kroeber’s legacy, as does our university and our state. Chancellor Christ highlighted the Governor of California’s 2019 apology to California’s Native Americans. She wrote “This un-naming is but one step in our ongoing efforts to repair our university’s relationship with members of Native American communities on our campus and beyond, and rebuild it on a foundation of respect, equity, and true inclusion.” In 2021 you’ll see the Hearst taking part in these efforts to build relationships and work to repair the harmful effects of this legacy.

Thank you for your continued support,

Lauren Kroiz
Faculty Director
Hearst Museum

Caroline Jean Fernald
Executive Director
Hearst Museum

As 2020 comes to a close, we’re excited to share some highlights from the Hearst Museum over the past year. We hope these moments from each month spark curiosity and connection, and that you join us for even more learning and discovery in 2021.

Dear Friends,

As we approach the end to a year like no other, we remain hopeful for the possibilities and changes that a new year may bring. To guide us on our way, we are excited to align the Hearst Museum’s goals with Light the Way: The Campaign for Berkeley. The priorities of the Campaign are to support faculty and graduate students, create undergraduate opportunities and experiences, promote research for the public good, and invest in places of possibility.  

Our vision for the Museum is to become a hub for discovery where learners of all ages and backgrounds can connect with one another to explore, innovate, and share ideas. The pandemic, a global movement for social justice and anti-racist action, and a devastating wildfire season have inspired us to reflect on how we can learn from our past to create a more inclusive future. In building a community of belonging, we want everyone to feel welcome at the Hearst Museum, whether experiencing the Museum online, in our gallery, or while researching our vast collection.  

As a place where cultures connect, we aspire to spark insights about what makes us all human and we invite you to join us on this journey as we Light the Way. Your gift of any amount to the Hearst Museum Fundhelps us connect cultures and communities to inspire a desire for understanding. Contributions to this fund support the greatest needs of the Museum and advance the public mission of the University of California. Giving to this fund creates new opportunities for access to UC Berkeley students, faculty, and staff, as well as communities of researchers, anthropologists, artists, and cultural leaders from across the globe.

Sincerely,

Caroline Jean Fernald

Executive Director

Today, on the Hearst Museum’s 119th birthday, we are proud to announce that we have joined the OF/BY/FOR ALL Change Network, a global community of civic and cultural organizations working to welcome new communities and become more inclusive, equitable, and relevant. The Change Network has 75 member organizations in 11 countries, including museums, libraries, theaters, and community centers. In this program, our team will work with forward-thinking peers around the world to adopt new approaches to community work, build new skills, listen to our community, and respond with meaningful action and change.

In joining the Change Network, we are making a year-long commitment to make concrete changes to grow closer to our community. We believe our work will be strongest if more voices are involved and included as we grow. We invite you to share your ideas for what a more inclusive Hearst Museum might look like, get involved in our evolution, and hold us accountable to our commitments as we move forward.

Learn more

October 3, 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the UC Regents’ unanimous approval of a resolution: “That young ladies be admitted into the University on equal terms in all respects with young men.” – Regent Samuel F. Butterworth

In 2020, Berkeley celebrated 150 Years of Women at Berkeley. The first women were admitted to the university in 1872, and since that time, hundreds of thousands of women have graduated from UC Berkeley, and thousands of staff, faculty, and friends of the campus have made immeasurable contributions to the UC Berkeley campus and beyond.

The Hearst Museum is honored to have been a site for research and teaching for innumerable women since its founding in 1901 by Phoebe A. Hearst, the first female regent of the University of California. In honor of this momentous year, we are delighted to share a selection of notable women who have worked with the Hearst Museum. The images below link to more information including: articles, online catalogs of collections donated to the Hearst Museum, and more. To read about other women affiliated with the Hearst Museum, visit Women in the Department of Near Eastern Studies.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for posts all year-long featuring #BerkeleyWomen150.

Dear Friends,

We’ve been reaching out and welcoming you to enjoy the Hearst from Home since our campus’s COVID-19 closure in mid-March. Today we also write with our feelings of grief, anger, sadness, helplessness, and outrage, encouraging you to read the recent Standing Together message from Chancellor Christ and Vice Chancellor Oscar Dubón in full. We stand with our campus, in solidarity with our Black community and against racially motivated violence. We take part in the Chancellor’s call for institutional self-examination that will move all of us toward “change for justice and belonging.”  

You know us as a museum where cultures connect. We acknowledge that these connections occur within broader historical systems of power, violence, injustice and exclusion. Today, we strive to advance our institution while also looking back to reckon with the immense weight of our past.  

As Christ and Dubón write: “We must call out and hold accountable our broken structures, build bridges that will lead to mutual understanding and respect across differences, and work to create a future in which we can all thrive, especially in these most challenging times.”

In community,

Lauren Kroiz – Faculty Director

Caroline Fernald – Executive Director

How to Learn More & Get Involved

• Anti-Racist Actions, Learning, and Engagement Resources from the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor & Provost at UC Berkeley

• Curated Resources for Addressing White Supremacy and Police Violence with Youth from the UC Berkeley Professional Development Providers

Dear Hearst Museum Friends and Supporters,

Along with many of you, we have been sheltering in place to limit the spread of COVID-19 in our community here in Berkeley. This order has been extended throughout the Bay Area for the duration of April and will likely result in limited operations for the next few months. We’re grateful to our staff, student workers, and volunteers who helped prepare the museum for this temporary closure and have adapted to working remotely. With the support of campus leaders, essential personnel are ensuring that our gallery and collections remain safe and secure until the moment we can welcome you back to the Hearst Museum.

Although our gallery is closed to the public, our staff has created a variety of ways to experience the Hearst from Home. You can also follow the Hearst Museum on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter as we develop new ways to share the museum with you. We are collaborating with our colleagues across campus to donate Personal Protective Equipment to where it is needed most throughout the University of California system. In challenging times it is all the more important for us to find ways of building community and connecting cultures.

While physically distant from each other, we have been reflecting on what brings us together and connects us. Our 3.8 million objects tell stories of amazing human resilience in the face of disaster, disease, injustice, and violence. As we confront an April so different than the one we imagined, learning about these past cultural responses is offering us a means of weathering the present and imagining the future world we want to live in together. The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated some of the ways we are all connected across space and generations. Whether you are a visitor, student, researcher, or member of a descendant community, we can’t wait to help you find and share your new stories about inclusion, solidarity, sustainability and hope.

Despite the shift in our operations, we were able to successfully raise over $111K through Big Give, a campus-wide annual fundraiser, and an additional $8K in prizes for the museum. We are also thrilled to announce that the museum recently received two new endowments valued at over $2.3 million. We are certainly challenged by the lack of income due to the temporary closure of the museum, but we are inspired that these new gifts will help secure our financial sustainability, helping us to build our future for many years to come.

Please stay home and enjoy our museum virtually for now. We look forward to welcoming everyone back to our galleries soon, and wish you all health and safety until then.

Thank you,

Caroline Jean Fernald, Ph.D.
Executive Director

Lauren Kroiz, Ph.D.
Faculty Director