Agnes Hsu-Tang and her husband Oscar Tang have donated 150 artworks by Native American artists to the New York Historical Society, where Hsu-Tang serves as board chair. The gift arrives as the country marks 250 years since its founding—a moment the Tangs framed not as an act of ownership, but of stewardship.
"We both see ourselves as messengers," Hsu-Tang said. "I don't own these works of art. I'm here to be a temporary steward of these messages, and to pass on—it's my duty to connect the past, the present, and the future."
The collection spans significant voices in Native American art: Fritz Scholder (Luiseño), Juane Quick-to-See Smith (Salish), T.C. Cannon (Kiowa), and Cara Romero (Chemehuevi), among others. These artists have shaped how Native perspectives appear in American museums and galleries—work that often arrived late to institutional recognition. By placing the collection at New York Historical now, the Tangs are making that work more accessible during a moment when the nation is reckoning with its own history.
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Start Your News DetoxThe framing matters here. Hsu-Tang's language—"temporary steward"—pushes back against the old museum logic where wealthy donors become de facto owners of cultural narratives. Instead, she's positioning the gift as a bridge: connecting what came before, what exists now, and what comes next. That's a different kind of power.
Meanwhile at the Met
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos will serve as honorary chairs of the Met Gala, the institution announced. It's their first time holding the museum's most prominent gala position—a role that typically means greeting guests at the top of the Met steps as the evening unfolds.
The couple has been major sponsors of the gala and its accompanying exhibition before, though their earlier involvement reportedly sparked some controversy. This elevation marks a shift in how the Met is positioning them within its fundraising hierarchy.
Elsewhere in the art world this week: the French government scrapped a plan to restructure Louvre management that would have sidelined president Laurence des Cars. The proposal would have positioned Philippe Jost—who led restoration work on fire-damaged Notre-Dame—as a de facto co-guardian of the museum. The move was widely seen as an attempt to undermine des Cars' authority, and its abandonment signals that some institutional boundaries still matter.
