The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 30, 2026

A vertically oriented color monotype on cream paper features a grid of four rows of three reddish-brown, birdlike figures. These gestural forms face in varying directions with limbs and wings extended, accented by shimmering patches of gold leaf. Dark gray, textured marks rest beneath each figure. The composition is centered on the page, which displays irregular, deckled edges and a signature in the lower right corner.

Dreaming in English (shadow dance)

2021

Nicholas Galanin

(Tlingít/Unangax̂, b. 1979)

America

Color monotype with gold leaf on paper

Image and Sheet: 76 x 57.2 cm (29 15/16 x 22 1/2 in.); Mount: 82.6 x 63.8 cm (32 1/2 x 25 1/8 in.)

Gift of Stephen Dull 2024.25

Location: 101B Prints & Drawings

Did You Know?

The artist’s use of gold leaf in this work is meant to symbolize what he sees as the corrupting influences of colonizers on indigenous lands and traditions.

Description

Describing his monotypes as “fleeting instances of joy,” artist Nicholas Galanin employs the gestural immediacy of the medium to evokes the ancestral memories and traditions of his Tlingít and Unangax̂ community. This monotype was made for a series meant to address the loss of indigenous languages and traditions due to forced assimilation at government-run boarding schools. Exploring his own internalized memories, here he evokes the coordinated movement of a dance sequence.

(Peter Blum Gallery, New York, NY) sold to Stephen Dull, Shaker Heights, OH
?–2023
Stephen Dull, Shaker Heights, OH, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
December 4, 2023–
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
still/emerging: Native American Works on Paper. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 1-June 7, 2026).
{{cite web|title=Dreaming in English (shadow dance)|url=false|author=Nicholas Galanin|year=2021|access-date=30 May 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2024.25