Â鶹ӳ»­

Great Basin
Indigenous Mural

The mural is a space for gathering, reflection, and celebration of Native American Peoples of the Great Basin.

Storytelling through art

The Great Basin Indigenous Mural provides a visual representation throughout the years of Native American communities in Â鶹ӳ»­, specifically in the Great Basin region. The mural includes imagery of education as a tool for empowerment and highlights contemporary Native American Peoples as vibrant Peoples who are deeply connected to their traditions, culture and lifeways. This mural provides representation for Native American students, staff, faculty, community members and visitors and strives to foster a sense of belonging at the Â鶹ӳ»­.

Located west/northwest side of the Ansari Business Building, between the William Pennington Student Achievement Center.

Artist Autumn Harry stands in front of a large wall mural of a rainbow trout

Meet the artist

Autumn Harry (she/her) is a member of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe. She is Numu (Northern Paiute) on her paternal side and Diné (Navajo) on her maternal side. Autumn has spent her entire life learning and connecting to the waters of Kooyooe Pa’a Panunadu (Pyramid Lake, NV). Autumn graduated in May 2024 with a Master of Science in Geography with a focus on the reclamation of Numu place names at Kooyooe Pa'a Panunadu. Autumn is the first Numu woman fly fishing guide in her homelands and she identifies as a fisherwoman, land defender, Indigenous rights advocate and artist.

The Great Basin Indigenous Mural

The mural consists of four panels: "Honoring Ancestors," "Kooyooe Pa’a Panunadu," "Shared Protection," and "DáÊ”aw Aga."

Honoring Ancestors

We honor our future generations by practicing the cultural teachings of those who came before us.

This panel features silhouettes of prominent Numu (Northern Paiute), Newe (Western Shoshone), and Wá·šiw (Washoe) ancestors who dedicated their lives to the protection of their homelands, waters, and communities.

Kooyooe Pa’a Panunadu

Kooyooe Pa’a Panunadu is the homelands of the Kooyooe Tukadu (Cui-ui Eaters). We give thanks to Numu leaders and ancestors, for restoring water rights to the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and recovering the fisheries populations.

In this panel, the Kooyooe (Cui-ui) and Agi (Lahontan Cutthroat Trout) are traveling upstream during their spawn migration while elder, Katie Frazier, fillets kooyooe on the beach.

Shared Protection

The Â鶹ӳ»­ is located on Numu, Wá·šiw, and Newe homelands. Tuba (pinenuts) is an ancestral food harvested by all Great Basin Tribes. The harvest is dependent on winter and spring precipitation and the fall rabbitbrush blooms signifies the pinenuts are ready to gather.

This panel highlights the shared protection of water, land, medicines, and food systems between Great Basin Tribes.

Dáʔaw Aga

Wá·šiw Peoples have been caring and protecting DáÊ”aw (Lake Tahoe) for time immemorial. DáÊ”aw is the headwaters of the Truckee River Watershed, which flows 121 miles from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake.

This panel of the mural incorporates the return of Lahontan Cutthroat Trout to the lake and emphasizes the intergenerational movement of water protection and the reclaiming of ancestral homelands.

Special thanks to the following:

  • Office of the President
  • Office of the Provost
  • Members of the Native American Mural Committee
  • University's Sesquicentennial Committee
  • Autumn Harry
  • The Indigenous communities represented within the mural

The University of Â鶹ӳ»­ recognizes that it is situated on the traditional homelands of the Numu (Northern Paiute), Wašiw (Washoe), Newe (Western Shoshone), and Nuwu (Southern Paiute) peoples and understands the importance of Tribal communities and Native Americans across the State of Â鶹ӳ»­, and their diverse perspectives.