According to the 2000 Census, over one million Native Americans live in states that fall within the Great Plains region.  Many of the artists within this population work in traditional media such as quillwork, beadwork and wood and bone carving. Their skills were learned from elders who in turn learned them from the previous generation, and so on. This transfer of cultural and artistic knowledge is one of the ways that contemporary work relates to historic material from the 19^th and 20^th centuries.

Moreover, indigenous people have always traded materials, shared ideas, and created innovative art forms, a tradition that persisted after Europeans invaded and colonized North America, and one that continues today. Indeed, looking to past art for inspiration is a time-honored tradition in many world cultures, including Euro-American art. Just as nineteenth-century Native artists incorporated trade materials (glass beads, wool cloth, ledger paper, etc.)  that were introduced by non-Native settlers and army personnel, some Native artists today choose to express themselves in new media, such as photography, or to question received conventions such as gender-specific art forms. The inclusion of both historic and contemporary works in Tipi: Heritage of the Great Plains illustrates this complex history, which is one of the exhibition’s themes.

The Times review also was critical of the involvement of Native American scholars, artists, and tribal members in the exhibition. In the wake of prevalent popular misconceptions and stereotypes, Native American participation was central to our goals in organizing the exhibition. The perspectives of our Native consultants—who have firsthand experience of tipi traditions and protocols, of languages and stories that belong to oral traditions, and of tipi arts and designs that have been passed down over generations—enriched the project immeasurably and were crucial to giving an accurate and sensitive presentation of Plains objects. Native involvement in the exhibition was a privilege for our Museum not an obligation.

For additional commentary from a Native perspective, please see America Meredith’s blog.

We welcome your comments.

Participants in the morning parade prepare for the procession.  Photo by Susan Kennedy Zeller.

Participants in morning parade moving through the Crow Fair campgrounds. Photo by Susan Kennedy Zeller.

The Grand Entry involving all particpating dancers who will be competing in the Powwows on Saturday and Sunday nights. Photo by Susan Kennedy Zeller.

On June 15, the first of two planning meetings was held at the Brooklyn Museum in order to determine the themes of the exhibition. A diverse group of ten consultants including scholars, tribal representatives and artists attended the meeting, along with the three exhibition curators (Nancy Rosoff, Susan Kennedy Zeller and Tim Ramsey), as well as other staff members.

Left to right sitting: Tim Ramsey (Southern Cheyenne-Choctaw), Teri Greeves (Kiowa), Christina Burke (Philbrook Museum), Derek Big Day (Crow), Heywood Big Day (Crow)

Left to right standing: Miranda Applebaum, Rima Ibrahim, Susan Kennedy Zeller, Don Moccasin (Rosebud Lakota Sioux), Barbara Hail (Haffenreffer Museum), Nancy Rosoff, Gerard Baker (Mandan-Hidatsa), Bently Spang (Northern Cheyenne), Dan Swan (Sam Noble Museum), and Mary Lou Big Day (Crow).

Consultants examine Plains objects from the Brooklyn Museum’s collection.

Tim Ramsey, Heywood Big Day and Gerard Baker examine the drawings on a tipi liner that was owned by the great Hunkpapa Sioux leader Rain-In-The-Face (ca. 1835-1905). Rain-In-The-Face was one of the Sioux leaders who fought and defeated General Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876. A tipi liner is hung around the inner tipi wall as insulation and decoration. The drawings on this liner depict battle scenes and religious ceremonies. This liner has never been studied or published and a special consultation meeting with other experts will be held at the Museum on September 7.

All photos by Rebecca Greenberg