Native American Art

Native American Art 11.1

Native American Art • Archeologists believe that the first visitors to North America were groups of Asian hunters who crossed an ancient land bridge across the Bering Strait. • The began to arrive in what is now Alaska between 20,000 and 40,000 years ago. • Gradually these people began to spread out to cover all parts of North and South America. • Some groups continued to live as hunters, whereas others settled and grew crops. • Artifacts found in these regions show that all of the groups created art of some kind, which gives us insight into their cultures.

Arctic Region • Covering the vast coastal area between northeast Siberia and eastern Greenland, was the homeland of the Inuit, or Eskimos. • Compared to a hunter or boat maker, artists played an a minor role in the Inuit life until recent times. • They fished and hunted along with other members of the villages and turned to their art only when the opportunity presented itself. • Artists did not imitate or criticize each others work, and they did not consider themselves as belonging to a special group. • They took their art seriously, and were proud of their accomplishments.

Inuit Art • The images created by the Inuit artists reveal the importance attached to the animals they relied on for food: seals, walrus, fish, whale, and caribou. • Other animals such as fox, wolf, and bear were represented in their art. • The human figure was depicted in masks and dolls they created.

Ivory Engraving • Figures were also found on engravings done on walrus ivory. • In these engravings artists used a kind of pictorial writing that described various activities and events associated with everyday. • To accent the engraved lines used in works likes this, artists filled them in with color or darkened them with soot. • Usually have to do with the quest for food.

Inuit Masks • Frequently Inuit art was created to serve the religious needs of the people. • This was the case of a masked carved to represent a moon goddess. • An Inuit shaman, or leader believed to have healing powers, wore such a mask during ceremonial dances. • While dancing the shaman would go in to a trance and act as a messenger between the world of the living and the spirit world. • What other cultures is a person that communicates with the gods considered an important part of society.

Northwest Coast Region • The vast North American territories below the arctic can be divided into a number of different regions. • These regions are determined by similarities in culture and language of the Native Americans who originally inhabited the land. • They depended on fish for food, forests provided timber for boats and houses, plants from the forest also offered food. • The prosperity and leisure that resulted from the abundant food supply contributed to the rise of elaborate rituals and ceremonies designed to celebrate and demonstrate rank and status.

Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl • The Kwakiutl, one of the Native-American groups inhabiting the Northwest Region, identified people of differing rank and wealth according to their affliction with one of several secret societies. • The most distinguished of these societies was for shamans only. • Within this society, the most important members formed a subgroup known as the Hamatsa. • Likes other societies, rituals were held to initiate new members, reinforce the status of old members, and demonstrate to nonmembers the extent of their magical powers. • These rituals were performed by other members wearing fantastic costumes and masks.

Secret Society Mask • This Hamasta mask is composed of several movable hinged pieces. • Movement was meant to add surprise and drama to the ritual. • Each of the several breaks in the mask could be manipulated to open and close enhancing its threatening appearance. • The eye areas are painted white to reflect the light from a ceremonial fire.

The Power of Ritual • Hamasta rituals were carefully staged for dramatic impact. • Subdued lighting permitted the use of elaborate props to add mystery and suspense. • After a Hamasta ceremony, to celebrate some other important event, members of a tribe often celebrated with a potlatch, an elaborate ceremonial feast. • This was a clan event, enabling the members of one clan to honor those of another while adding to their own prestige. • At a potlatch, the host clan was able to exhibit its wealth and confirm its status by offering enormous quantities of food and valuable gifts.

Totem Poles • Totem poles – tall posts carved and painted with a series of animal symbols associated with a particular family or clan. • Found in the Northwestern region. • They can be thought of as similar to a European family’s coat of arms. • These poles were erected in front of a dwelling as means of identification and a sign of prestige. • May have taken a team of artists over a year to complete one totem pole. • Can reach up to 80 feet high.

The Design of Totem Poles • Each totem pole has a complex design. • Every part of the pole holds interest for the viewer. Thus the viewers eye is constantly engaged as it sweeps upward from one animal to another • Even more complex are totem poles that are completely painted, often with contrasting colors. • The more symbols on the totem pole the more prestigious the family is in that community

Southwest Region • Another cultural region extends from the northern area of Mexico to the southern foothills of the Rocky Mountains. • Though many Native American groups lived in this territory, it is most often associated with the Pueblo people.

The Pueblo • Early Spanish explorers used the word Pueblo, meaning village, to identify groups of people living in large, highly organized settlements. • Ancient Pueblo dwellings were built with walls made of adobe, or sundried clay. • One of the most important parts of a pueblo was the kiva, a circular underground structure.

Pueblo Dwellings • Functional and well organized • The rooms of the Pueblo were arranged into several stories. • Each story is set farther back then the last to create terraces. • The Kiva had a flat floor with one entry. • A raised fire pit stood in the middle of the kiva floor. • The sipapu, a small hole in the kiva floor, symbolized the place through which the people originally emerged into this world.

Pueblo Pottery • The Pueblo people were especially skillful in creating painted pottery. • Each community developed its own distinctive shapes and painted designs. • In the Rio Grande Valley of New Mexico, for example, Pueblo potters used black outlines and geometric shapes to create bold designs over a cream colored base. • Maria Martinez developed her own style of pottery with her husband, known as blackware. Maria Martinez Pottery

The Navajo • Another southwestern tribe, the Navajo learned the art of weaving from male Pueblo weavers. • The Navajo weavers, who were women, began making cloth with looms. As Spanish and Mexican settlers moved into the Southwest, they introduced new designs and patterns which were quickly adapted. • A woven saddle blanket shows qualities associated with the finest Navajo weavings. They include the closeness of the weave, vibrant colors, and bold designs. • This design is called an eye-dazzler, because it created the illusion of motion with its bright colors and repeated pattern. Navajo Saddle Blanket

The Great Plains Region • Our most familiar image of Native Americans comes from the Great Plains. • This area between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains stretches from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada. • Because their lands were not generally suited for farming, people living there became hunters. • Continually on the move, these tribes followed the great herds of bison that once covered the land. • This movement from place to place made the production of pottery, basket ware, or weaving impractical. • Work in wood or stone was limited mainly to the fashioning of bows and flint-tipped arrows for hunting, which are called arrowheads.

Painted Animal Skins • The different tribes of the Plains – including Blackfeet, Crow, Cheyenne, and Sioux-were highly skilled in the preparation of skins used for clothing, footwear, shields, and various kinds of containers. • There were painted or embroidered with porcupine quills and later, glass beads. • The men of the tribe usually did the painting. • Events pictured on a robe often illustrated the bravery of the person wearing it, thought to protect the wearer, and was highly prized.

Woodlands region • Includes the area between the Mississippi River and the Atlantic Coast, from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. • The geographic variety of this region resulted in the formation of many different cultures.

The Mound Builders • In prehistoric times, small villages were often clustered around monuments constructed in the form of large mounds. • Some took the form of high, narrow ridges of earth that encircled large fields. • The purpose of these mounds remains a subject of debate among archeologists. Some think that they were built to create an impressive setting for spiritual ceremonies. Serpent Mound State Memorial Adams County, Ohio

The Great Serpent Mound • The most impressive of the mounds constructed. • Formed to look like a huge serpent in the act of uncoiling. • The mound is about ¼ mile long. • A great many works must have been involved in its creation. • This kind of project suggests both organization and leadership.

The Iroquois • One of the largest tribes living in the northeast are of the woodlands region was the Iroquois. • Expert wood carvers, they created masks that were usually painted and decorated with horse hair. • The best known were created for a society of healers known as the False Faces because of the masks that they wore. • These sacred masks represented the spirits who gave healers the power they needed to treat illnesses. • Because they were so powerful the masks were hidden when they were not being used.

Vocab & Quiz Review • Inuit – Eskimos • adobe- sundried clay • kiva, a circular underground structure • Potlatch – a elaborate ceremonial feast. • Totem poles – tall posts carved and painted with a series of animal symbols associated with a particular family or clan. • Sipapu – a small hole in the kiva floor which symbolizes the place where people originally emerge into this world. • Know characteristics of each region and what Native American tribes live in each.

Native American Art