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What could you make with a lump of clay?
How about from a buffalo hide? What about a handful of porcupine quills? For centuries, Native Americans have turned such ordinary materials into beautiful and useful artworks. Native American art is about the spiritual connection between human beings and the natural world. Artists often say a prayer of thanks to the animal, plant, or rock that gave them the raw material for their art.
Native American art goes back thousands of years. It’s also as fresh as tomorrow. Native artists have always included new ideas and materials in their work. Long before the Europeans came, different groups of Native Americans influenced each other’s art. They traded shells, feathers, copper, and paint to make new objects. When Europeans introduced them to beads, silversmithing, and ribbons, Native Americans used these new materials in their own unique way.
◀ Look closely at the patchwork dress on this Seminole doll. It’s a combination of traditional Native American design and modern technology. It was made with a sewing machine.
▲ For centuries, Native Americans painted on objects that they used. These included everything from tanned hides and ceramic vessels to tepees and the walls of ceremonial rooms. They also painted on rattles, masks, drums, and shields. Europeans showed them how to paint on paper and canvas. Native artists added this to their own themes and styles.
The Inuit were expert carvers. But they had no words for art or artist until the Europeans came. They carved stone, bone, ivory, and wood. They carved everything from cooking pots to good luck charms. Today, most of their carving is bought by tourists.
The Pueblo people of New Mexico have made and decorated ceramics for hundreds of years. Today, Pueblo youngsters still learn the craft from their elders. As part of their education, they listen to stories about Clay-Old-Woman. She lives in the clay and gives life to the pots and figures they create. While gathering clay, the potters thank Clay-Old-Woman for her generosity. ▶
▲ In an 1875 attempt to wipe out Native resistance in the West, 72 Native Americans from various tribes were sent to prison in St. Augustine, Florida. One of them was Bear’s Heart, who was Cheyenne. While in prison, he took up drawing. He drew many scenes from his life. These included everything from Cheyenne buffalo hunts to troop inspections at the prison.
◀ Like other modern artists, today’s Native American artists look for unique ways to express their ideas. This mask is an example of that.
Native North Americans are the only people in the world who have created an art form using porcupine quills. Quillwork probably started among Eastern Woodlands people. Later it was brought to the plains by tribes following the buffalo. Quills are sorted by size, washed, and dyed. They are softened in the mouth. Then they’re pulled between teeth to make them flat. Quills can be used in weaving, embroidery, or braiding. ▶
