Evoke Contemporary – SUMMER SALON | Group Exhibition featuring Rabbett Before Horses Strickland

Evoke Contemporary carries forward the rich tradition of salons as catalysts for artistic dialogue
and intellectual exchange, fostering a dynamic space where creativity and conversation converge.
Showcasing a diverse group of artists, the gallery presents thought-provoking works that explore
themes of identity, history, and transformation, challenging perspectives and inspiring deeper
engagement with contemporary art.
This summer, Evoke is pleased to introduce Rabbett Before Horses Strickland, an Anishinaabe
artist and an enrolled member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, with
additional ties to the Red Cliff and Bad River bands of Lake Superior Ojibwe. He grew up in the
San Francisco Bay Area, surrounded by artists — his mother, aunts, and uncles were all painters.
He lives and works from his home in secluded woodlands on Lake Superior in northern
Wisconsin.
The nickname “Rabbett” emerged around 1963–64 as his sense of Native identity took shape,
and he later legally adopted it as his name. He became fascinated with the Ojibwe trickster figure
Nanabozhoo in his early 20s, not long after joining Richard Oakes and other American Indians in
the 1969 occupation of Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay.
Largely self-taught, Strickland is an autodidact with no formal art training. As a child he visited
San Francisco’s Palace of the Legion of Honor and copied works by Caravaggio and other
masters. His mature style draws heavily on the European Renaissance and Baroque traditions —
Botticelli, Michelangelo, Titian, Velázquez, Rubens, and Leonardo — fused with Ojibwe
mythology. He has summarized his approach: “My movement came from Botticelli, my color
from Rubens, and my form from Michelangelo.”
Other artists in this year’s Summer Salon include Esha Chiocchio, Francis DiFronzo, Irene
Hardwicke Olivieri, Nicholas Herrera, Michael Scott and Thomas Vigil.

Opening reception Friday, July 31, 5pm – 7pm, on display through August 22, 2026.

Toad Women Healing the Minidoos. Oil on linen, 60 x 84