The Autry

🌵Howdy, y’all! Summer’s on the horizon, but May at the Autry is already heating up with unforgettable experiences for every age. 🤠🌸 ✨ From toe-tappin’ Autry After Hours—featuring The Soda Crackers, plus BBQ, Brews, and Blues with Bobby Warren and Shy But Flyy—to the return of our Silent Treatment and What Is a Western? film series, there’s something for every Western spirit. 🌼 Bring the whole family for hands-on fun at Family Fun Day: May Flowers, or find your moment of calm at our Wellness Weekend Sound Bath. And don’t miss the grand opening of our newest exhibition, Life, Liberty, and Los Angeles—a celebration of the city’s vibrant stories. Mark your calendars, explore our full lineup, and make this May one for the memory books. Which event are you most excited for? Let us know below! #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #WesternAmericanHistory #SpringAtTheAutry

Meet the Artist: Brocade Stops Black Eagle Brocade Stops Black Eagle lives on the Crow Indian Reservation located in southcentral Montana. She is an accomplished fashion designer and beadwork artist who previously worked as a registered nurse for more than a decade. She and her family are active members of the Crow community, and participate in cultural events throughout the year. Dúusshile (Elk tooth dress). 1880s. Apsáalooke Artist. Apsáalooke (Crow). Trade cloth, elk teeth, bone, glass beads, and leather. Purchased by The Southwest Museum Acquisition Fund. Autry Museum; 47.P.141A Bálaaisshiwaawaammishe (Beaded purse). 2022. Brocade Stops Black Eagle. Apsáalooke (Crow); Numakiki (Mandan); Hiraacá (Hidatsa), born 1982. Zipper, cotton lining, glass beads, buckskin, and cotton thread. Museum Purchase. Autry Museum; 2022.21.1 Baleiipáhpaatbaalowak baleeahpalakússaawak (Beaded belt). 2025. Brocade Stops Black Eagle. Apsáalooke (Crow); Numakiki (Mandan); Hiraacá (Hidatsa), born 1982. Leather, glass beads, brass tacks, thread, and buckle. Museum Purchase. Autry National Center; 2025.30.1 Batshúaisshe (Awl case). 1890s. Apsáalooke Artist. Apsáalooke (Crow). Rawhide, leather, and glass beads. Autry Museum; 3.C.478 📸: @mitokino #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #NativeArt

"Tipis created by the Blackfeet Tribe are erect to face the east in honor of the spring Sun. The Tribe granted the Autry special permission to face this tipi west, allowing visitors to learn about the pictographs (drawings or symbols that communicate informatrion) that adorns this work. Kill-Close-To-The-Lake created this painted tipi, which features the exploits of her husband, Big Eyes. It was made for and gifted to anthropologist Walter McClintock, wholived and studied with the Blackfeet in the early 1900's. During his fifteen years with the tribe, McClintock was adopted into a Blackfeet family and recorded many aspects of their lifeways." #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #IndigenousCulture

Historians have disagreed over the first name for Los Angeles. In 1769, Franciscan priest Father Juan Crespi named what’s now the L.A. River Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles de la Porciúncula (Our Lady of the Angels of Porciúncula) and some argue the pueblo later took its name from the river. But by 1785, the first handwritten map shows the name Pueblo de la Reyna de Los Angeles (the town of the Queen of Angels). Other variations appear in early documents, but all inspired by the settlers devotion to the Virgin Mary. Our Lady Queen of the Angels, made in Mexico or Spain, 1700s. Wax, wood, glass, brocade, brass, and paint. The Caroline Boeing Poole Collection, Gift of Colonel John Hudson Poole. Autry Museum; 648.G.205.1 #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #WesternAmericanHistory

Join us for an unforgettable evening of live music, dancing, and fun under the stars. Savor local craft brews🍻 and mouthwatering BBQ🍖 from food trucks, then let the rhythms of blues and jazz carry you across the plaza. Experience the soulful sounds of Bobby Warren, L.A.’s real-deal Mississippi bluesman whose music blends Southern soul and honest storytelling. Discover Shy But Flyy, a dynamic blues, jazz, and spoken-word band from Long Beach, whose performances ignite stages from California to London. 🗓️Event Schedule: 🤩6 p.m. Doors Open 🎤6:30 p.m. Performance by Shy But Flyy 🖼️7:15 p.m. Intermission. Explore the museum galleries! 🎸7:45 p.m. Performance by Bobby Warren 🌌9 p.m. Event Ends #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #WesternAmericanHistory

"Life, Liberty, and Los Angeles" tells the story of how Angelenos have defined freedom on their own terms for over 200 years. From competing visions to shared struggles, this exhibition explores how diverse communities have shaped LA and challenged America's founding ideals in the process. Opening May 30, you can discover the contradictions, triumphs, and ongoing conversations that make Los Angeles essential to understanding the American story.

Step into the golden light of Point Reyes, where history and imagination meet. This hand-colored lantern slide by Frederick H. Maude, dating back to the late 19th or early 20th century, captures the Pacific coast’s wild beauty—rolling waves🌊, dramatic skies, and endless inspiration. What stories do you see unfolding along these shores? Share your own view of the West in the comments or tag us in your photos. Let the spirit of California’s landscapes🌄 spark your creativity today!💭 🖼️: Maude, F.H. lantern slide. C. late 19th - early 20th century. Autry Museum of the American West. LS.13963. #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #WesternAmericanHistory #PointReyes

Step into the "Religion and Ritual" section of our Art of the West exhibition and discover a story that sparkles✨ with imagination. Miss Velma’s custom-made dress👗 isn’t just fabric—it’s a testament to creativity, charisma, and the power of performance in the West. As preacher, outsider artist, and co-founder of the Universal World Church⛪ in Los Angeles, Miss Velma captivated audiences with her theatrical sermons and magnetic presence. Her legacy lives on in LA’s vibrant landscape of new religious movements. #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #SoCalMuseums #WesternAmericanHistory

Step into the story of the American West at the Autry! Don’t miss the old saloon🍺 in the Anheuser-Busch gallery—a space that brings the frontier to life. From vintage spirits and historic artwork to a real poker table♠️ and an original bar top from 19th-century Wyoming, every detail invites you to imagine the legends and laughter that once filled these halls. What will you find in the saloon? #AutryMuseum #GriffithPark #DiscoverLA #WesternAmericanHistory

Find your green escape in the heart of LA. 🌿 Our 7,000-square-foot ethnobotanical garden features over 60 native California plants, a tranquil pond and waterfall, and an interactive guide exploring how Indigenous communities have used these species for generations. Designed by landscape architect Matthew Kennedy (Ponca), this outdoor oasis is the perfect spot to pause and reconnect with the land.

Congratulations to our friends over at the @wendemuseum for their new expansion. Can’t wait to see it🤠 #SoCalMuseums

From the Vault exploring the Autry Art Collections: Illinois Flatscape no. 61, 1997 by Harold Gregor uses an aerial perspective to represent a Midwestern farm🚜, a landscape known as "America’s breadbasket" due to its rich soil and agricultural surplus. This region extends from Michigan south to Kansas, northern Oklahoma, and Texas, and accounts for the majority of America’s grain production. Bisected with irrigation ditches into geometric fields, the abstract grid of the landscape looks from above like a work of modern art. 🖼️:Harold Gregor. Illinois Flatscape no. 61. 1997. Oil on canvas. Purchased by the 2004 Gold Acquisitions Committee. 2004.23.2. Autry Museum of the American West.