SANTA FE, NM.- In 2012, IAIA will turn 50, and leading up to that date, each decade since the Institute’s founding will be celebrated at an annual gala event. This year “The ‘70s: The Revolution Continues” kicks off at 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 19 at the historic La Fonda hotel in Santa Fe. Tickets start at $125 per person and table sponsorships are also available. Call 505.424.2310 to reserve a spot now as last year’s event sold out three weeks early! All proceeds will benefit Native American student scholarships.

A “Wednesday Night Fever” atmosphere will conjure up memories of polyester and platforms, balancing disco-esque fun with more serious perspectives from a decade known for Native American activism. The NAMMY Award-winning musical group Walela, featuring singers Rita Coolidge, Priscilla Coolidge and Laura Satterfield, will perform for the event, reuniting to celebrate a critical era in Native American self-determination.

New Mexico’s Governor Bill Richardson and First Lady Barbara Richardson are serving as honorary co-chairs for the evening, and KOAT Action 7 News Anchor Royale Dá and actor Raoul Trujillo (Apocalypto, HBO’s True Blood) will co-emcee the event. Accepting IAIA’s Lifetime Achievement Award is Chuck Dailey, museum studies professor emeritus who has devoted more than 35 years of his life to IAIA. His late wife, Carol, will be honored with him.

Wendy Ponca, ‘70s alumna and former faculty member, will serve as the event’s honorary advisory committee chair, while community volunteers Jill Momaday Gray and Melissa Coleman are enlisting friends new and old to support the gala’s goal: scholarships for IAIA’s College of Contemporary Native Arts students. Momaday Gray and Coleman said, “We are deeply committed to this event because all proceeds will support scholarships and educational opportunities for Native students. We passionately support IAIA for its legacy of creating the first and only educational institution for contemporary Native Arts and for its profound impact on Native People to express themselves in their own voice.”

Guests will have the opportunity to bid on works by renowned Native American artists such as Victoria Adams, Cody Sanderson, Lonnie Vigil, Tony Abetya, Jody Naranjo and many, many more.