“River Connections” is a student art exhibition done in collaboration with the International Fiber Collaborative. Now in our fourth year, Hopewell Culture National Historical Park collaborates with IFC by composing a theme and IFC sends the theme and materials to participating schools around the country.

Our theme this year took inspiration from the many rivers that are near earthworks:
Rivers flow near every earthwork constructed by the Native Americans of the Hopewell period 2,000 years ago. The routines of living—sleeping, cooking, gardening, tool and clothing making, and child rearing—took place in small settlements near the rivers. The Scioto River, Paint Creek, and the north fork of Paint Creek still provide spiritual connections to the earthworks for today’s American Indians.

The rivers offered much bounty for the Native Americans: mussels, fishes, turtles, otters, muskrats, ducks, geese, and large wading birds. Rivers were a ready water source for drinking, bathing, and cooking, and for the game people hunted. The Scioto River and Paint Creek connected with many other rivers and streams, giving the people a vital link to other communities and distant regions and allowing them to gather to create monumental earthworks on a large scale.

Students from schools around the country drew inspiration from this theme, and connected with our park rangers through Distance Learning to create this year’s student art exhibition. Artwork is on display in the Mound City Group Visitor Center auditorium now through June 22, 2025 during regular business hours 9am – 4pm, every day of the week.

To learn more call the park at 740-774-1126.