It’s a weird time to be grateful. Over the past year, President Trump rolled back protections for Native lands and sovereignty while attempting to erase entire chapters from American history; namely, the ones where White people commit unspeakable injustices. As we recoil at the return of monuments honoring figures better left forgotten, we find solace in the members of our art community who, against all odds, are trying to do the right thing. This Thanksgiving, we’re celebrating 25 things that bring us joy, great and small: gorgeous sculptures by Jeffrey Gibson at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, long-awaited repatriations, no-strings-attached grants for artists, gallery dogs, and more. —Valentina Di Liscia, senior editor
- Jeffrey Gibson’s Met Museum facade: Animated by ancestral joy and wisdom, this is easily one of the best art installations of the year. The surprise I felt when I first saw this regal quartet of animals — deer, coyote, hawk, and squirrel — won’t leave me any time soon. —Hakim Bishara, editor-in-chief
- University museums: Untethered to the forces of the market, they produce some of the most thoughtful and well-researched exhibitions. They’ve been going through a rough time under Trump, and deserve every bit of support and encouragement. —HB
- Indigenous curators: Native, First Nations, and Indigenous curators around the world are continuing to break the mold: April Phillips (Wiradjuri-Scottish of the Galari/Kalari peoples) at the National Portrait Gallery of Australia, Candice Hopkins (Carcross/Tagish First Nation) at the Forge Project, Sháńdíín Brown (Diné), Patricia Marroquin Norby (Purépecha) at The Met, Darienne Turner (Yurok Tribe of California) at the Brooklyn Museum, and so many others organized shows that are shifting the field, both in and out of the museum. —Lakshmi Rivera Amin, associate editor
- Repatriations: The past year has seen some truly historic artwork returns, not all of them by major institutions that should have undertaken these efforts long ago. The Santa Ana Pueblo’s entirely Native-led repatriation of a trove of artifacts stolen four decades ago, including culturally relevant pottery, clothing, baskets, and more, is one moving example. —VD
- Local art publications: We salute the dedication of our colleagues at publications such as Carla in Los Angeles, Variable West in Portland, Oregon, Burnaway in Atlanta, and BmoreArt in Baltimore, and many others. Keep up the good work. —HB
- Thoughtful collection rehangs: Some museums periodically scramble their collection items and throw them all back out there like they’re pressing the shuffle button on a playlist. Others invest time and resources to curate and strategize a wholly new visitor experience (see: The Met’s reimagined Arts of Oceania galleries and the Brooklyn Museum’s American wing). I’m personally looking forward to the Chazen Museum of Art’s forthcoming reinstallation, where each space will feature a “focus object” from which other pieces radiate and deepen the conversation. —VD