Session Three

Early Depictions of The Lives and Work of Indigenous Artists

Fort Marion and Beyond: Native American Ledger Drawings, 1865-1900, David Noland Gallery in collaboration with Donald Ellis Gallery, January 25 - March 2, 2024

"Visual sovereignity is the exercise of cultural and intellectual sovereignty, the rights of Indigenous peoples to imagine themselves in ways that uphold the wisdom and teachings of our ancestors." Michelle H. Raheja, University of Arizona Press, 2015

Welcome to Session Three

Here is our first glimps of work done by Indigenous artists: 19th Century Ledger Art, Native Object (Baskets, Pottery. Blankets), Painting and Photography. A distinction is not made between fine arts and crafts; The term, visual arts, is often be used to describe the fine arts as well as decorative arts and crafts

Here, we find that during the late 19th and early 20th century the Indian peoples of the Great Plains adopted Ledger art to tell their story of what was happening. Ledger art expressed history.

In the late nineteenth century Native craftspeople were making clothing, weaving, doing beadwork and creating pottery for the American tourist trade. Often, the American flag was incorporated in their work, too. Their income from sales was a necessity for feeding their hungry families and communities. Over time their work and their designs reflected the expectations of others, a pattern that continued well into the twentieth century.

Scroll down to become acquainted with these different forms of Indigenous art and the artists who created them. Enjoy the designs of these pieces and their historical aspects. What are their stories?

Part One - 19th Century Ledger Art

"After the Indian Wars subsided, President Ulysses S. Grant's Attorney General concluded that a state of war could not exist between a nation and its wards (which the federally recognized tribes were considered). He ordered the prisoners to be sent as prisoners of war for permanet imprisonment at Fort Marion, St. Augustine, Florida. Richard Pratt was chosen to lead and supervise the prisoners at the Fort. In the 1870s he introduced classes in the English language, art and craftsmanship to several dozen prisoners who had been chosen." (Wikipedia)

From Art Daily, Jan 10, 2025

LAS VEGAS, NEV.- Soon collectors of Western and Native-American art and antiques will be off to America’s entertainment capital, Las Vegas, for the mega-event of 2025, as Morphy’s presents its Old West Show & Auction in tandem with the premier Las Vegas Antique Arms Show. On Friday and Saturday, January 24-25, the three attractions will be held conveniently under one roof at the Westgate Casino & Resort, with a comprehensive selection of goods that includes Western art, antiques, jewelry, home décor, cowboy paraphernalia and much more.

Over both days, guests can browse and buy from 800 tables of exceptional items from some of the world’s finest Western dealers and craftsmen, and on opening day, starting at 4pm local time, Morphy’s will take center stage to conduct an exciting live auction. The 495-lot selection includes important and historical Western and Native-American art and antiques; apparel, saddles, spurs, bridles and other equine tack; Wild West Show items, and other early memorabilia. All forms of bidding will be available, including live online through Morphy Live.

A fine selection of Native American artifacts includes textiles, silver jewelry, basketry, and beaded saddles, bags and gauntlets; however the top entry in this category is an item of immeasurable historical importance. It is a ledger and story book belonging to Sitting Bull’s nephew, White Bull (1849-1947), that documents several Indian battles in the West. It contains a total of 162 pages, 120 of which are written and 33 with illustrations. Another 28 pages are blank and directly face drawings. “It would not be an overstatement to say that White Bull’s illustrated ledger, which chronicles a crucial period for the Lakota people, is every bit as important to tribal historiography as The Papers of Thomas Jefferson are to the historical context of America’s colonial period,” said Dan Morphy, founder and president of Morphy Auctions. The ledger’s recent provenance includes Morning Star Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Estimate: $75,000-$125,000

Further background information

The Ledger Art Collection, Milwaukee Public Museum
Why Is an Auction House Selling Works by Imprisoned Native Artists? by Matt Stromberg, Hyperallergic, Oct. 25, 2022
Venerable Objects, Their Creators and Cultures, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp 27-33
Cave Featuring Native American Wall Art is Sold to Anonymous Bidder. By Isabella Grullón Paz, NY Times, Sept. 16, 2021
Julia Arriola, New Artist at Medicine Man Gallery, 19th Century Steampunk Ledger Drawings, YouTube 5.50 min
Native Ledger Art, Smithsonian Education YouTube (first 5 min.)

Matoniyaluta (Red Living Bear), Shoots a Crow, Takes His Pony, Milwaukee Public Museum, (left); Cetanlutaka (Red Hawk), Chasing Crow on Horseback, Shoots Him in the Head, Milwaukee Public Museum (right).

"In this enigmatic scene, a mounted warrior wearing a long feather headdress with horns and carrying a feathered shield and spear rides alongside a wounded warrior apparently falling from his horse. An additional shield and trade era Leman rifle are drawn in the top right corner, and hoofprints mark the path of the two riders. It is unclear whether the wounded man is a comrade being rescued or a victim. Based on a variety of clues, the drawings are thought to have been created sometime between 1875 and 1895". University of Texas, Museum of Art

Part Two - Native Objects : Baskets, Pottery, Blankets, and American Flag on Native Objects

Baskets

A late 19th Century example of the Pomo Basket

The Pomo Indians of Northern California have long been celebrated for their extraordinary basket weaving. Made by both women and women, these exemplary baskets incorporated materails from the annual harvest and served both utilitarian and ceremonial purposes.

Beginning in the 1870s, so called Califronia baskets became very popular with with Euro-Americans. While greatly reduced in number Pomo basket makers are still revered for their sacred artistic practices.

Further background information

Entangled Narratives: Encountering Native American Art in the American Wing (pgs 17,18)

Edward Sheriff Curtis, The Burden-Basket— Coast Pomo, Plate 475, 1924. Photogravure. Rogers Fund, 1926, transferred from the Library, 1976.505.14.4. Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Cecilia Joaquin from Hopland is collecting edible seeds by striking the plant with the seedbeater in her right hand and knocking the ripe seeds into the carrying basket held by its rim in her left hand. Edward Sheriff Curtis, Gathering Seeds--Coast Pomo, 1868-1952. Photographic print. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Photograph by Edward S. Curtis, courtesy of the Library of Congress,

For further information

Carrying Baskets: The Seeds of Pomo Life in California By Sherrie Smith-Ferri, December 16, 2021. The deYoung/ Legion of Honor Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
Entangled Narratives: Encountering Native American Art in the American Wing, pp 17,18.

Pottery

Jar (Olla) with Feathers and Avanyu (1930-1943) by Marla and Julian Martinez

Maria Martinez, 1887-1980, Julian Martinez, 1885 -1943, a married couple of the San Ildefonso Pueblo, New Mexico

Jar (Olla) with Feathers and Avanyu (1930-1943)

"Partially inspired by archeological discoveries of black-on-black chards in the Pajarito Plateau region, the Martinezes led a revival of ancient pottery styles-innovatively reformulated - among Pueblo artists. Between 1919 and 1943 Marla shaped the pots, and Julian painted the designs. A work such as this, signed by the artists (at the urging of non-Native curators) to emphasize their aesthetic quality, quickly became popular collectibles that were valued by Euro-Europeans for more than their utilitarian and/or ritural use." Art of Native America, The Charles and Valerie Diker Collection, The Metropolitan Museum

For further information

Venerable Objects, Their Creators and Cultures, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp 42-43

Blankets

The "Chief's Blanket"

The designation "chief's blanket", an invention of traders and merchants, refers to the stature of textiles such as this one shown here, made by an unknown weaver in Arizona or New Mexic around 1840, as well as the esteem in which leaders from other tribes held them. Ownership of the garment reflected status and wealth, and prominent Plains men eagerly acquired them for theirwives and daughters. Art of Native Americans, Metropolitan Museum of Art.

For further information

Venerable Objects, Their Creators and Cultures, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp 42-45

The American Flag on Native Objects

Lakota/Teton Sioux Artist, Tipi Bag, North or South Dakota, c.a. 1890, Native tanned leather, glass beads, metal cones, horsehair, and dye, 14x19 1/2 in. Art of North America, The Charles and Valerie Diker Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"This bag was made during the early reservation period after the United States government outlawed the Lakota’s annual Sundance and instituted Fourth of July celebrations in its place. During this time, the American flag and interpretations of the Great Seal of the United States became popular beadwork motifs. The artist may have made the container as a special gift. Earlier, in nomadic times, this same type of object transported belongings from one camp to the next and also ornamented the inside of the tipi." The Metropolitan Museum of Art

"The American flag may seem to be an odd choice of imagery to be used by tribes that clashed violently with the American government for years, but the use of flags in plains beadwork became a common sight beginning c. 1880. Almost forty tribes from various areas used the flag in their work. However, from 1880-1910 at the height of flag imagery, the Lakota produced the overwhelming amount of items with US flag motifs."US Flags in Plains Beadwork, Wyoming State Museum, Google Arts and Culture.

For further information

US Flags in Plains Beadwork

Part Three - Native Art - Flat, non-naturalistic style as reflected in work by Kiowa Five/Kiowa Six artists, and changing forms of art by R.C. Gorman and George Morrison.

Kiowa Five/Kiowa Six

"Kiowa Six are considered significant in the development of Native American painting by bridging the era of Ledger Art to flat-style Southern Plains. While not the first Native Americans to be successful in the international mainstream art world, their careers proved inspirational to many Native American artists in the 20th Century." Wikipedia

For further information

Below view individual work by members of the Kiowa Six:

Spencer Asah (1906-1954)
James Auchiah (1906 – 1974)
Monroe Tsatoke (1904-1937)
Jack Hokeah (1901-1969)
Stephen Mopope (1898 – 1974)
Lois Smoky Kaulaity (1907 – 1981)

Kiowa Six: Lois Smoky Kaulaity (1907 – 1981)

Lois Smoky Kaulaity (1907 – 1981), Lullaby, mid 20th century, tempera on paper, Gilcrease Museum

"Lullaby depicts a Kiowa (Cáuigù)1 mother holding her child up toward the sky as she looks upward, her lips parted in song. The mother’s cheeks are adorned with red ocher paint. She is wearing a yellow painted Cáuigù buckskin dress with beadwork at the sleeve line and skirt tail, and her belt has a worked silver drop trailing from beneath her fingertip-length fringed sleeves. Her beaded leggings are made from braintanned hide, whitened by the tanning process. The child is swaddled in a Cáuigù cradleboard, designed and created by the family’s matriarchs. Intricate beadwork has been sewn along both right and left panels, and the beaded cradle casement was constructed from hide. The cradle is fastened to a wooden lattice, with twisted hide fringes sewn to the footer."

"The Kiowa style of painting employed by Bou-ge-Tah (whose English name was Lois Smokey) is distinguished by a flattened depth of field, which is also found in narrative ledger art.2 Because the Kiowa style is devoid of shading, its artists translate motion and fluidity through diagonal line armovements, indicated here by the representation of the mother’s dress and hair at an angle to imply a breeze."

"Lullaby provides an intimate perspective on Cáuigù motherhood and childhood. During Bou-ge-Tah’s studio-based education at the University of Oklahoma, her mother traveled with her as a chaperone and stayed for the duration of her tutelage by artist Oscar Jacobson". By Jordan Poorman Cocker, Henry Luce Foundation Curatorial Scholar for Indigenous Painting

Kiowa Six: Spencer Asah (1906- 1954) (left)

Kiowa Six: James Auchiah (1906- 1974) (right)

Spencer Asah (1906-1954), Flute Dancer, mid 20th Century, tempera on paper, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

James Auchiah (1906 - 1974), Indians at Work, 1939, tempera on paper, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Kiowa Six: Monroe Tsatoke (1904-1937)

Monroe Tsatoke (1904-1937), Portrait of an Indian Man, 1936, oil on canvas, Gilcrease Museum

"Kiowa (Cáuigù)1 artist Monroe Tsatoke had fallen ill when he was in his late twenties, during a tuberculosis epidemic, but he continued to paint until his untimely death at age thirty-two, in 1937. In this self-portrait, created about a year before he died, the artist departed from the Kiowa Style or Flatstyle of painting and delved into realism and modernism, evident in his use of shadows and shading to convey depth and dimension, and in his bold colors. The luminous hues of his fully beaded Kiowa vest, silk scarf, and braid bindings frame the artist’s face and highlight his eyes. Here we glimpse the artist’s desire to depict his personal experience. His clothing and adornments—by which he was known and recognized—speak to the intersections between the Indigenous community and the newly formed state of Oklahoma.2 Many of Tsatoke’s paintings celebrate Indigenous ideals and traditions while simultaneously reconciling his experiences with colonial history." Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Kiowa Six: Jack Hokeah (1901-1969) (left)

Kiowa Six: Stephen Mopope (1898–1974) (right)

Jack Hokeah (1901-1969), The Red Blanket, tempera on paper, mid 20th Century, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Stephen Mopope (1898 – 1974), Indian Man, oil on canvas, 1927, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

R.C. Gorman (1931 -2005)

Rudolph Carl (R.C.) Gorman

Rudolph Carl (R.C.) Gorman, a Native American artist of the Navajo Nation and referred to as the Picasso of American Indian was considered to have broken the "mold of Indian art."

For further information

R.C. Gorman, Wikipedia
Who is Rudolph Carl Gorman? Chimayo Trading Del Norte

See work below by R.C. Gorman.

R.C. Gorman, Pottery Keeper, stone lithograph, 1977

R.C. Gorman, Navajo Dawn, stone lithograph, 1992

George Morrison (1919- 2000)

George Morrison

George Morrison (1919- 2000) was an Ojibwe abstract painter and sculptor from Minnesota.

Further background information

George Morrison, Wikipedia
George Morrison, Minnesota Museum of American Art
From Cedar Tree to Cedar Street: The Modern Spirit of George Morrison, American Indian, Fall 2013, vol 14, No. 3
Native Artist's Work Enters the National Gallery Collection, Untitled (1961) by Taylor Michael, Hyperallergic, Feb. 5, 2023

See work below by George Morrison.

George Morrison, Untitled, 1961, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Art. This work by George Morrison was the first by an Native Indian to be selected for the Museum's Abstract Expressionism collection.

Part Four - Early Photography

Native Americans made their own photographs from early on. Here we study the first Native professional photographers.:

Benjamin Alfred (B.A.) Haldine (1874-1941)

Horace Poolow (1906 - 1984)

Lee Marlon (1925-2021)

Richard Ray Whitman (b. 1949)

Benjamin Alfred (B.A.) Haldane (1874-1941)

B.A. Haldane

Benjamin Alfred (B.A.) Haldane (1874-1941), born in British Columbia was a Tsimshian profesional photographer noted for being one of the first professional Native photographers in North America and in his work showing an indigenous narrative that differed from colonial viewpoints.

Further background information

B.A. Haldane, Wikipedia
Photographic Sovereignity in Metlakatla In Our Hands

See work below by Benjamin Alfred (B.A.) Haldane.

B.A. (Benjamin Alfred) Haldane, Tsimshian, 1874-1941, Benjamin A. Haldane self-portrait in studio in Metlakatla, c. 1919-1920

Benjamin Alfred (B.A.) Haldane (1874-1941, Portrait, Photo of Tsimshian

Horace Poolow (1906 - 1984)

Horace Poolow

Horace Poolow (1906 - 1984), born in Mountain View, Oklahoma was a Kiowa photographer.

Further background information

Horace Poolaw, Wikipedia
Entertaining on Horseback, The Met, ca. 1928

For a Love of his People, the Photography of Horace Poolow, New York, American Museum of the American Indian, 2014-2015
Valor in Black and White: Horace Poolaw's War Stories, American Indian, Magazine of Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, Winter 2014

See work below by Horace Poolow.

Horace Poolaw, Kiowa, 1906-1984, Horace Poolaw aerial photographer, and Gus Palmer (Kiowa), side gunner inside a B-17 Flying Fortress, Tampa, Fla., c. 1944. Courtesy of the Poolaw Family and the Nash Library, University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma

Lee Marmon (1925-2021)

Lee Marmon

Lee Marmon (1925 - 2021), born at Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico, was one of the first professional Native American photographers.

Further background information

Lee Marmon, Wikipedia
Between Two Worlds: The Photography of Lee Marmon — City of Albuquerque, 1985 One of the first professional Native American photographers captured heartfelt portraits, stunning landscapes, and important events fostering an Indigenous view of New Mexico."

Memories of Lee Marmon: A Lifetime of Photographic Storytelling in New Mexico NMAI Magazine, Summer 2021

See work below by Lee Marmon.

Lee Marmon, White Man’s Moccasins, 1954, gelatin silver print, Gorman Museum of American Art

Lee Marmon, Acoma Mission Bell, 1985, gelatin silver print, Center for Southwest Research, University of New Mexico

Richard Ray Whitman (b. 1949)

Richard Ray Whitman

Richard Ray Whitman (b. 1949), Claremore, Oklahoma is a Yuchi-Muscogee multidisplinary visual artist, poet and actor. He is enrolled in the Muscogee Nation.

Richard Ray Whitman's landmark project was his Street Chiefs project, the 1970s and ’80s photo series of Oklahoma City’s homeless Indian men. (See the images below.)

Further background information

Richard Ray Whitman, Wikipedia
Richard Ray Whitman's pursuit of art led him to ativism by Wilhelm Murg, Arts and Crafts, Oklahoma Gazette

See work below by Richard Ray Whitman.

Richard Ray Whitman, Street Chiefs Project, 1970s and ’80s. (Photo series of Oklahoma City’s homeless Indian men.)

Richard Ray Whitman, Family, from the series Street Chiefs, 1980–88, Gelatin silver print

Readings

Every Picture Tells a Story, an essay by Paul Chatt Smith, author and associate curator at the National Museum of the American Indian. (Everything You Know about Indians is Wrong, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2009)

The author concludes with the idea about "film and indigenous people growing up together".

Background information

Entangled Narratives: Encountering Native Anerican Art in the American Wing By Silvia Yount, Art of Native America, The Charles and Valerie Diker Collection, Metropolitan Museum of New York
Why Native Artists Are Reclaiming the Wirling Log. The Dine' symbol was suppressed for decades by a settler-dominated art market that conflated it with the Nazi insignia. by Sha'n'ndiin Brown and Zach Feuer, Hyperallergic, July 18, 2024
Carrying Baskets: The Seeds of Pomo Life in California By Sherrie Smith-Ferri, December 16, 2021. The deYoung/ Legion of Honor Fine Arts Museums of San Franciso
US Flags in Plains Beadwork, Wyoming State Museum

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