Center for Native Futures

Established in 2020, the Center for Native Futures (CfNF) has rapidly become an epicenter of community and creativity. It is the only Native artist-led fine arts gallery based in Zhegagoynak (Chicago), serving as a vital platform for Native creatives. CfNF challenges pervasive and inaccurate portrayals of Native people. By fostering Native artists of all backgrounds—including those with mixed identities—a powerful lens is provided through which art can illuminate the past, enrich the present, and realize a thriving future. CfNF offers unparalleled opportunities and platforms to nurture and elevate Indigenous artists at every stage of their careers. Indigenous Futurism is at the heart of the Center's philosophy, an artistic approach that expands possibilities and realities by imagining lives beyond colonial limitations. CfNF is dedicated to showcasing the futurity of Native people as living cultures by acknowledging and advancing contemporary Native fine arts and insisting on inclusion in the city’s overarching narratives through exhibitions, residencies, and programming.