Contemporary Native Art...

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Contemporary Native Art...
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Traditions develop and adapt
Materials and mediums become traditional over
time. At some point all materials and mediums
were new.
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How do we decide if an artform is traditional or
contemporary?
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Authenticating Native art
Do the tools used for construction determine the
authenticity?
Noit is ethnicity that defines American Indian
art.
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Contemporary vs. Traditional
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Contemporary artforms expand traditional avenues
of creativity and expression.
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Pottery continues to be produced in the old
ways, with new design attributes.
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All mediums and materials are used by Native
artists today.
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Some questions of definition concerning modern
Native art

• Must a work be produced in Western art media and
  formats?
• Should all forms of art made by Native people in
  the last century be considered modern?
• Should subject matter be contemporary issues or
  can traditional heritage and belief be included?
• Should professional art-school training be
  required?
• Must the work be by a Native artist who has legal
  recognized status from the government?

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Moments of art-making

• Contact introduced new materials for existing
  mediums of expression, all of which were
  gathered, utilized, adapted, and incorporated
  into Native artistic traditions.
• It also opened a new vista of Western
  orientations toward art and expression.
• What is generally accepted as modern Native art
  expression begins in the late nineteenth century
  with ledger art

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Plains ledger art
Ledger art represents some of the earliest Native
transition paintings from animal hides to
western paper formats. Most of these were
completed by Plains warriors during periods of
incarceration. They are called ledger art
because many of the paintings were created on the
pages of ledger (accounting) books, obtained from
soldiers and missionaries.
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Black HawkSans-arc Lakota, 1881
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Southern Cheyenne Ledger1870s
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Fort Marion Ledger ArtKiowa, 1870s
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Howling WolfSouthern Cheyenne, 1875
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The advent of the twentieth century and Native
art

• The Kiowa Five of the southern Plains
• The Studio Style of the Southwest
• Native Modernists
• Art and political activism
• Post-modernism
• Installation art display

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The Kiowa Five of the southern Plains

• The Kiowa Five opened the eyes of the world to
  Native arts in the 20th century by using
  materials and mediums not considered traditional.
• They were
• James Auchiah
• Spencer Asah
• Jack Hokeah
• Stephen Mopope
• Monroe Tsatoke
• Lois Smokey

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The Studio Style of the Southwest

• Students at the Sante Fe Indian School were
  encouraged to paint scenes from traditional life.
  Many of these students became leading Native
  artists of the 20th century.

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Easel Paintings Bambi Art

• Many of the early 20th century Native painters
  developed styles which in later decades became
  known as easel art and then the more
  disparaging term bambi art was applied since
  some of the imagery was thought to resemble early
  Disney production work.
• The professional art world has never embraced
  Native painting traditions, and the controversy
  over authenticity and acceptance continues today.

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Native Modernists

• Oscar Howe
• Yanktonai Sioux

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Art and Political Activism

• Hachivi Edgar Heap of Birds
• Cheyenne

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Post-modernism
Marcus Amerman Choctaw
Arthur Amiotte Lakota
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More post-modern Native art
Sharon Dryflower Reyna Taos Pueblo
Pena Bonita Apache/Seminole
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Installation Art

• Truman Lowe
• Seneca/Tuscarora

Larry McNeil Tlingit/Nisgaa
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The Future of American Indian Art
We are still here