We Were Always Here

We Were Always Here is a group exhibition in Gallery 5 at The Delaware Contemporary, bringing together Indigenous artists connected to the Eastern Woodlands. Presented as part of Delaware’s 250th-anniversary observance, the exhibition focuses on Indigenous art, craft, language, regalia, origins, and stories, emphasizing the continuity and enduring presence of the Nanticoke, Lenape, and other Indigenous peoples whose histories are rooted in the region.

The exhibition uses materials including wood, bone, hide, beads, cloth, and reclaimed objects. Together, the works explore family knowledge, traditional ecological practices, stewardship of the land, survival, cultural endurance, and histories that predate the founding of the United States. The exhibition is presented as a companion to *Our Sun Is Rising — Our Sun Is Setting*, with both exhibitions addressing the country’s history and its relationship to stolen Indigenous land.

When: August 7, 2026, through February 28, 2027

Venue: The Delaware Contemporary, Gallery 5, 200 South Madison Street, Wilmington, DE 19801

Contributing artists: Kesha “Quiet Medicine Tree” Bruanskill, Robert Cole, Denise Bright Dove Dunkley, Melissa “Quiet Thunder Turtle” Jackson, Farrah Stigall, Maggie Stigall, and Rebecca L. “Little Turtle Who Sees” Jackson-Square

Tickets: $7 for adults; $5 for seniors, veterans, and students with identification. Admission is free for visitors 18 and under and museum members. Admission is also free every first Friday during Art Loop.

Hours: Wednesday from 4 to 8 PM; Thursday and Friday from noon to 5 PM; Saturday and Sunday from 10:30 AM to 5 PM. The museum is open by appointment on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Schedule note: Hours may change on holiday weekends. The museum is closed on New Year’s Day, Juneteenth, July 4, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day.