David W. Penney

David W. Penney joined the staff of the Detroit Institute of Arts in 1980 as an assistant curator in the Department of African, Oceanic, and New World Cultures.

He recently published North American Indian Art as part of the notable Thames and Hudson “World of Art” series.

He has organized two major traveling exhibitions for the DIA, “Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians” in 1985 and “Art of the American Indian Frontier, the Chandler/Pohrt Collection” in 1992.

He is the author of many additional books, catalogues, and published essays. In addition to his responsibilities at the DIA, Penney is often sought out for consultancies. Penney has been invited to participate in an advisory capacity by the National Museum of the American Indian, the Missouri Historical Museum, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Jefferson home at Monticello, The British Museum, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the National Gallery of Art, the Portland Art Museum, the American Federation of Arts, and several other arts and cultural organizations. Penney has served as a panelist for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, and as a reviewer for the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Source: Detroit Institute of Art