Native American Art

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Textiles and Jewelry

Navajo women are known for their woven textiles made from sheep’s wool, especially blankets for wearing and rugs. Some of these textiles are striped. Others, called chief’s blankets, are patterned with a combination of stripes, crosses, and diamond shapes. During some periods chemical imports replaced natural dyes, with weavers using yarns manufactured by machine. The bright and lively patterns that resulted are called eye dazzlers. At other times weavers have responded to demands of purchasers and made textiles with natural materials in softer colors that buyers considered more authentic.

Navajo artists also work in silver, using methods developed from those first taught to Navajos by a Mexican blacksmith around 1850. Early works in silver include belt buckles and horse gear such as bridles. Today, Navajo people wear intricate silver jewelry including pieces set with turquoise and other stones. They also sell this jewelry to outsiders. Zuni jewelers are known for complex mosaic inlays of colored stones set in complex patterns in their silverwork.

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Sand Painting

An art form for which Navajo healers have become widely known is sand painting, an elaborate kind of dry painting made for ritual purposes. At the ritual the healer sings about the legendary Holy People (Navajo creator gods and cultural heroes). Some of the songs or chants take years to memorize. The healer then makes images from dry materials, such as sand, crushed stone, and plant pollen, according to strict design formulas. The patient sits upon the painting itself to be restored to a state of harmony and health. Finally, the healer destroys the dry painting he has assembled with great effort, to allow the materials to return to the earth. Today, some Navajo artists weave rugs that resemble sand paintings or glue sand in place on boards to create the same effect. These works are sold in shops and art galleries and are not considered to have the powerful effect of those created by ritual healers.

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Arts of the Northwest Coast

The Northwest Coast region includes parts of southeastern Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon. Climate and environment play key roles in the cultural and artistic practices that are characteristic of the area. Although many people associate dark nights and freezing temperatures with the region, southeastern Alaska and British Columbia are warmed by the Japan Current and have very wet, temperate climates. Rain forests cover much of the land, and beaches run along the coast. Not surprisingly, native economies in the Northwest depend heavily on fishing, especially for salmon, and on hunting sea mammals such as whales and seals. These creatures are all frequent subjects of Northwest Coast art.

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Totem Poles

The abundance of lumber from Northwest forests fostered the development of woodworking techniques. Native peoples of the Northwest used these techniques in making totem poles, an original Northwest Coast art form, as well as in building canoes and houses from wooden planks. Totem poles consist of stacked, interconnected images that are carved and painted. These images record family histories and identify the ancestry and affiliations of chiefs and other high-ranking members of the community. Some totem poles were built as memorials to important chiefs and may have niches or supports for the chief’s remains.

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Potlatch Ceremonies

Another factor that influenced arts of the Northwest Coast was social standing. Traditionally, Northwest groups such as the Haida, Kwakwaka’wakw (Kwakiutl), Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka), and Tlingit lived in hierarchical (ranked) societies that categorized people as chiefs, commoners, or slaves. People acquired high rank as well as privileges regarding territory and rituals by having a heroic ancestor or ancestors who had encountered a supernatural being or an extraordinary animal. Each generation maintained their privileges and those of their descendents by hosting ceremonies called potlatches. The word potlatch derives from the word “to give” in Chinook jargon, a simplified version of the Chinook language used in trade. In these ceremonial gatherings the family enhanced its prestige by giving payments and gifts to those who listened to and remembered the family history. Wealthy and important families might hold potlatches to confirm a person’s new title or to commemorate an event in the life of a community member, such as birth, puberty, marriage, or death.

Many Native American and Native Canadian communities in the Northwest Coast region continue to hold potlatches to remind young people of the histories of their families and social groups. Sometimes a potlatch dedicates a newly built house. The ceremonies vary from group to group, but they usually incorporate speechmaking or oratory about prestigious histories and are often accompanied by masked dances. The masks take different forms. Some resemble human faces whereas others look like the fantastic faces of supernatural creatures. Some masks split open during a dance, when the performer tugs on strings, to transform into a second creature. Potlatches traditionally took place in a communal house, and the setting required additional works of art such as carved houseposts, painted screens, and dishes for the accompanying feast. Participants wore regalia (artistic dress) related to their social position.