Wichita artists strengthen and enrich our community across all branches of the arts. They inspire, entertain, challenge, and advance knowledge of the world around us, its diverse histories, and its possibilities for the future. Beginning in 2026, the Ulrich will introduce In Place, a series featuring solo exhibitions by Wichita-based artists that will reflect their unique experiences and celebrate the breadth of styles, points of view, and creative processes represented within the Wichita arts community. In Place demonstrates the Ulrich’s commitment to expanding human experience through encounters with the art of our time by platforming artists who live, create, and innovate right here in the Wichita area, our shared place.
The first in this series, Taiomah Rutledge: Origins/Evolutions, is an exhibition of new works by Wichita-based multidisciplinary artist Rutledge, a member of the Ojibwe, Meskwaki and Dakota nations and cofounder of Warclan Collective. Through a bold fusion of mixed media, abstraction, and symbolic figuration, Rutledge weaves deeply personal narratives that explore identity, generational memory, and the reclamation of cultural space.
Drawing from his heritage and lived experiences, Rutledge’s practice is rooted in both the tactile and the transcendent. His latest series incorporates layered textures, experimental materials, and striking visual language to reflect on the intersections of Indigenous futurism, ancestral knowledge, and contemporary resistance. Each piece becomes a site of dialogue between history and possibility.
Rutledge’s work challenges static representations of First Nation identities and perspectives, instead offering dynamic, evolving forms that assert presence, vitality, and transformation. Origins/Evolutions marks a powerful continuation of Rutledge’s role as both artist and cultural advocate.
Organized by the Ulrich Museum of Art. Curated by Jo Reinert, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art.
Our 2026 Spring exhibitions and associated programs are made possible by the generosity of members of Ulrich Friends with Benefits, whose ongoing support makes programming possible. The City of Wichita and Wichita State University provide funding support for the Ulrich’s general operations.
