Viewers will learn about the Muwekma Ohlone’s “Trail of Truth” journey on horseback from California to Washington D.C. to advocate for the reinstatement of their federal recognition. They traveled with sacred horses gifted to them by the Lakota Nation, and were supported by several tribal nations across the US that welcomed them on their land and reinforced their message to the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.

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This exhibition focuses on the Muwekma Ohlone’s cultural and practical efforts in land stewardship, including cultural burns and the cultivation of native plants that provide resources for regalia making, food, and traditional healing. They are reawakening their Chochenyo language as well as dance, music, song, and ceremonies. This exhibition sheds light on the Tribe’s ongoing cultural revival after a century of erasure following the loss of, and the fight to regain, federal recognition.

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The goal of this project is to highlight the Disability Arts Community as a way to reveal how art can be created: in communities, through conversation and support, through interdependence, and within systems of care. The concept of interdependence, or mutual reliance, celebrates asking for assistance, and honors the collaboration that is often present in artistic practice. NUMU provides a venue for conversation and learning to shift perspectives and develop awareness of disability culture and artists with disabilities. 

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The Los Gatos History Project is NUMU’s unprecedented effort to catalog and dive deeper into its permanent collection. This exhibition, the first to come out of the project, presents a selection of objects that have given the museum more questions than answers. By taking a critical look at these objects and the stories they tell, the exhibition will prompt visitors to ask: Who made these objects? Why did the museum collect them? What can we learn from them? And whose stories are missing? Through this exhibition, visitors will gain a greater understanding of museum collecting practices, and a greater appreciation for the hidden complexities of Los Gatos history.

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Opened in September 2023, this demonstration and prep lab serves as a dedicated space to display artifacts, conduct conservation efforts, and present public educational programs. In this space, NUMU demonstrates that history is anything but static! The Collections Lab is open Friday-Sunday during museum hours.

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Born in Taiwan, Belle Yang is an author and illustrator of adult nonfiction books, children's books, and a graphic memoir.  She spent part of her childhood in Japan.  At age seven, she emigrated to the United States with her mother and father.

Yang’s work moves fluidly between memory and imagination, drawing from personal history, cultural inheritance, and everyday life. Trained as both a painter and storyteller, she has developed a distinctive visual language that weaves ink, color, and narrative into an effective and immersive practice.

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ArtNow is an award-winning annual juried Santa Clara County high school art exhibition and educational program, presented by New Museum Los Gatos (NUMU). ArtNow offers opportunities for high school student artists, from Palo Alto to Gilroy, to gain real-world experience by participating in a juried museum exhibition. Each year, a new theme is chosen for the exhibition, and students are asked to submit works based on that theme. This year, we invited students to submit an original artwork responding to the theme: What We Carry. We invite you to consider the many things you hold, from the mundane to the metaphorical.

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Explore the history and legacy of the creation of Lexington Reservoir in commemoration of its 75th anniversary and the construction of the James J. Lenihan Dam to conserve water and prevent flooding.

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