NHMU Indigenous Art Market & Festival Photo by Mark Johnston/NHMU
Indigenous Art Market & Festival Highlights Art, Heritage, and Storytelling
Popular Salt Lake City Market Grows to Largest Yet, Hosting 50 Indigenous Artists
SALT LAKE CITY, September 19, 2025 – On October 11 and 12, the Indigenous Art Market & Festival at the Natural History Museum of Utah (NHMU) will bring 50 renowned Native American artists representing over a dozen tribes to Salt Lake City to sell authentic art and share Indigenous traditions.
The market offers a rare opportunity to meet artists in person, hear their stories, and purchase their work directly—with 100 percent of market sales staying with the artists. Beyond the market, the festival will feature opportunities to engage with Native communities, learn about traditional art forms, and celebrate Indigenous culture.
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Photo by Mark Johnston/NHMU
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Photo by Mark Johnston/NHMU
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Photo by Mark Johnston/NHMU
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I had a desire to meet and converse with the end user of my beadwork and learn about the environment in which my photographs would be hung. Because of that, I decided to start exhibiting at museum art markets. Although I participate in large markets across the country, I love the atmosphere that NHMU provides. The location is not only breathtaking, but the size of the market is also comfortable and accessible for both the artists and the visitors alike.
Photo by Mark Johnston/NHMU
Buyers can peruse fine jewelry, pottery, sculptures, carvings, kachinas, paintings, weavings, beadwork, and sand paintings at a wide range of prices. Along with artist vendors, the event will feature artist demos of flintknapping and quill work.
In addition to the market being a unique shopping experience, it’s an opportunity to learn about Native American culture through dance performances and discussions with local pow wow dances, screenings of Indigenous films featured at the Sundance Film Festival, and conversations with featured designers from the experience a pop-up exhibition celebrating the creativity and artistry of Utah Indigenous Fashion Week.
This market serves as a keystone experience, helping avid shoppers and museum guests connect more deeply with Native American art and culture. Not only does it offer a shopping experience found nowhere else in Salt Lake City, with a rare opportunity to shop from 50 renowned artists in once place, but it always leaves guests with newfound understanding and appreciation for Indigenous cultures in Utah and beyond.
The market and festival are open at NHMU from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. both Saturday, October 11, and Sunday, October 12, and Museum Members get early access to shop starting at 9 a.m. Now, for the first time, Museum Members can access the market early at 9 a.m. for first chance to shop. Museum admission is required to attend the market and festival. Learn more at nhmu.utah.edu/market.
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About the Indigenous Art Market & Festival
Since its inception in 2013, NHMU’s Indigenous Art Market and Festival has become a cherished annual tradition, drawing some of the nation’s most gifted Native American artists to Salt Lake City. The event showcases a vibrant blend of traditional and contemporary Indigenous expression through storytelling, heritage, and artistry. Visitors can explore and purchase one-of-a-kind works—from intricate beadwork and handwoven textiles to finely crafted pottery, jewelry, and paintings. More than just a market, it offers a unique opportunity to engage with living traditions and hear directly from artists who are preserving and passing on cultural knowledge through their work. With 100 percent of proceeds going directly to the artists, the festival honors their contributions and supports their ongoing creative practices, standing as a celebration of resilience, creativity, and the enduring vibrancy of Indigenous cultures.
About the Natural History Museum of Utah
The Natural History Museum of Utah is one of the leading scientific research and cultural institutions in the country. Established in 1963, the museum’s 10 permanent exhibitions are anchored by its state-of-the-art collections and research facilities containing almost 2 million objects. These collections are used in studies on geological, biological, and cultural diversity, and the history of living systems and human cultures within the Utah region. The museum hosts approximately 300,000 general visitors a year and provides one of the most spectacular private event settings in the Salt Lake City area. NHMU also broadens the reach of its mission through a variety of science-based outreach programs to communities and schools throughout Utah, reaching every school district in the state every other year.
