The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts has reached an agreement that will allow the Pueblo of Pojoaque to use the Santa Fe Indian Market name and SWAIA's distinctive brand at a gallery inside the pueblo's new Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino.

"A gallery space ... really seems to be the type of economic opportunity that we should try out. It's going to require some work on our part, working with a brand," said SWAIA executive director Bruce Bernstein.

The pueblo and SWAIA announced in May that Pojoaque will be a named sponsor of the annual Indian Market for the next three years. Each year, the market brings about 1,100 artists to Santa Fe. The sponsorship makes the Buffalo Thunder name part of the Santa Fe Indian Market name in promotional material, but the gallery franchise is separate from the sponsorship arrangement, Bernstein said.

Originally founded about 80 years ago, SWAIA was at first created to move American Indians toward economic and cultural assimilation, Bernstein said. But SWAIA's annual August markets have fueled an economic engine that let many American Indian artists maintain cultural traditions.

The gallery in Pojoaque, along with a vast collection of American Indian art incorporated in the hotel design and décor, he said, marks Pojoaque's durable presence at a pueblo they nearly lost within the past century.

Among the smallest of New Mexico pueblos, Pojoaque was all but abandoned by tribal members in the early 1900s. Members returned and eventually built a robust business community that now includes grocery and convenience stores, a visitors center, a museum and gallery with adjacent art studios, rental properties, a bowling alley, three hotels and three casinos.

"They have marked their permanence in that place," Bernstein said. "They're telling people (through their increasingly arts-oriented ventures) that 'we are here, we are not going anyplace.' "

The Santa Fe Indian Market Gallery at Buffalo Thunder will open Aug. 12, when the hotel opens, said Pojoaque Gov. George Rivera. Between now and then, the pueblo will install the works of some 100 American Indian artists throughout the hotel and casino while preparing for the simultaneous opening of the gallery.

The new gallery will exclusively showcase SWAIA artists, who are all enrolled members of recognized American Indian tribes whose work has been reviewed and approved by a jury of experts. Selected artists will sign contracts with the gallery.

Bernstein said discussions between the pueblo and SWAIA have focused on both theme-oriented shows and shows presenting the work of particular artists.

While touring the new five-floor, 390-room hotel, casino and convention facility with SWAIA staff and board members Tuesday, Bernstein quashed rumors that the 80-year-old August Indian Market would move from Santa Fe to Pojoaque, although there have been casual discussions among SWAIA leaders about a separate springtime market in Pojoaque.

"The magic of Indian Market is being on those city streets," Bernstein said Wednesday.

"I think the openness of being in the city, being downtown on the Plaza, in the second oldest city or whatever it is, built on a pueblo city, (with a) long tradition of native arts, and just putting down those tents" all assure Indian Market will have a home in Santa Fe.

Success at the Pojoaque gallery could also encourage SWAIA to explore the idea of a gallery space in Santa Fe, Bernstein said.