Exhibit Featuring Vibrant Night Sky Photography Coming to Mille Lacs Indian Museum

For immediate release

Release dated: March 28, 2024

MNHS media contacts: Nick Jungheim, 651-259-3060, nick.jungheim@mnhs.org or Allison Ortiz, 651-259-3051, allison.ortiz@mnhs.org

Photos from Travis Novitsky’s book “Spirits Dancing” explore the wonders of the night sky

Onamia, Minn. (March 28, 2024) – Beginning on April 10, guests at the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post will have the opportunity to admire a special exhibit featuring 15 stunning photographs of northern Minnesota’s night sky.

Showcasing the work of photographer Travis Novitsky (Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa), the exhibit, titled Spirits Dancing: Photographs of the Night Sky, reveals how the union of Indigenous knowledge and Western science enriches our understanding of our place in the universe. Photos in the exhibit present the night sky’s beauty and examine the majestic aurora, Milky Way, and constellations. 

Drawn from Novitsky’s recently released book, Spirits Dancing: The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge, and Living Connections to the Cosmos, with text by Annette S. Lee PhD, MFA (Communities Ojibwe and D(L)akota) and published by MNHS Press, the photos tell the story of how humans have long marveled at the night sky and found peace in stargazing.

Spirits Dancing, which was previously on display at the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis, will be at the Mille Lacs Indian Museum through May 31 and visitation will be included with regular site admission. The museum is open from 10 am –5 pm, Wednesdays through Saturdays. Admission costs $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, veterans, active military, college students, and children ages 5–17, and is free for children age 4 and under, MNHS members, MNHS members, and Native Americans.

For more information, please contact Nick Jungheim.

About the Minnesota Historical Society
The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849. MNHS collects, preserves, and tells the story of Minnesota’s past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs, and book publishing. Using the power of history to transform lives, MNHS preserves our past, shares our state’s stories, and connects people with history.