Location:
Clayton Staples Gallery
McKnight Art Center West, Room 210
School of Art, Design and Creative Industries

The Silence of Hocq’reila | Steve Willis
On view August 18–September 25, 2026

Gallery hours:
Monday–Friday | 8 a.m.–5 p.m.

Exhibition-related events
Artist Talk | Thursday, September 24 | 4–5 p.m.
McKnight Art Center West, Room 210
WSU School of Art, Design and Creative Industries
Hear from the artist about the inspiration and practice behind The Silence of Hocq’reila, currently on view in the Clayton Staples Gallery.

Meet-the-Artist Reception | Thursday, September 24 | 5–6 p.m.
McKnight Art Center West, Clayton Staples Gallery, second floor
WSU School of Art, Design and Creative Industries
Meet the artist while mixing and mingling with friends. Reception is free and open to all. Light hors d’oeuvres and beverages will be served.

Workshop | Friday, September 25 | 1:30–4:30 p.m.
McKnight Art Center North, Room 121

From the artist
The Silence of Hocq’reila addresses spiritual portals and sacred spaces based on my experiences with the Hocq’reila Ceremonies including Sun Dances, Vision Quests, and Sweat Lodges. The images are choreographed, narrated, contextualized, and composed by Spiritual directions. It is an intersection of the media and technique, and the meditative silence of spirituality that direct the images. The images are occurrences on a Spiritual journey addressed with material means.

About the artist
Dr. Steve Willis, professor of art education at Missouri State University, is known for bringing cross-cultural and Indigenous perspectives into the field of K–12 art teacher education. Willis has been recognized with the Kenneth Marantz Fellows Award for contributions to culturally inclusive art education, named a National Art Education Association Distinguished Fellow, and received the Edwin Ziegfeld National Award for distinguished leadership at the national and international levels. Willis holds a PhD in art teacher education from Florida State University.