Review of Imprisoned Art, Complex Patronage: Plains Drawings by Howling Wolf and Zotom at the Autry National Center by Joyce M. Szabo (original) (raw)
2012
Imprisoned Art adds to its author\u27s growing list of impressive publications that consider the so-called ledger drawings created by Plains Indian warriors incarcerated, as prisoners of the Southern Plains wars, at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida, between 1875 and 1879. It focuses on what were once two fully intact books of drawings, one by Zotom (Kiowa), the other by Howling Wolf (Cheyenne). Treated earlier in Dorothy Dunn\u27s 1877: Plains Indian Sketch Books of Zo-Tom and Howling Wolf (1969), and, with respect to Howling Wolf, in Szabo\u27s Howling Wolf and the History of Ledger Art (1994), the books receive here a comprehensive analysis that considers not only the artists and their drawings, but, most significantly, their patron
Art, Artists, Form and Function, Chapter 11 of a Book by the Author
Art, Artists, Form and Function, 2020
In the introduction to the book Global Feminisms: New Directions in Contemporary Art, a record of the exhibition of global feminisms organized by the Brooklyn Museum March 23 to July 1, 2007, remarks that "the year 2007 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Women Artists at the Brooklyn Museum. From its inception, Global Feminisms has defined itself in counterpoint to the pioneering exhibition called Women Artists 1550-1950 organized in 1976 by Ann Sutherland Harris and Linda Nochlin, which presented a historical survey of women artists from the Renaissance to the modern era. Women Artists opened at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) in December 1976 and ended its four-venue tour at the Brooklyn Museum in November 1977. Unlike Women Artists, which has the specific goal of reclaiming women lost from the Western historical canon, Global Feminisms aims to present a multitude of feminist voices from across cultures. In doing so, the exhibition challenges the often exclusionary discourse of contemporary art, which assumes that the West is the center and relegates all else to the periphery" (15). Interpretation through the vision of feminism establishes my view of the Pocahontas Archive. My paradigm for feminist practice beyond the Pocahontas Archive is to evaluate current works in the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art in Brooklyn, New York, as well as works collected in the volume titled Art and Feminism (Themes and Movements) (2001), edited by Helena Reckitt and Peggy Phelan; and Global Feminisms: New Directions in Contemporary Art (2007), edited by Maura Reilly and Linda Nochlin. "Feminist Practice in the Art of Pocahontas Viewed Through Feminist Art Theory" reveals curtains surrounding stereotypes, gender status and power in our postcolonial era; the level and substance of most passion for [Native American women] … has been selective, stereotyped, and damaging (Green). By infusing ideas about Pocahontas's Native American identity through art historiography, I study her assimilation in mythic terms appropriate for feminist practices, and then extend my inquisition to feminist art theory present in the study of Disney's first eco-feminist heroine. As we explore the art of Pocahontas in the light of critical race theory, which has its roots in the more established fields of anthropology, sociology, history, philosophy, and politics, we see that the notions of social construction and reality of race and discrimination are ever present in the writings of known contemporary critical race theorists such as Derrick Bell, Mari Matsuda, Richard Delgado, Kimberlé Crenshaw, and William Tate, as well as pioneers in the field, including W. E. B. Du Bois and Max Weber. This field has its roots firmly planted in American soil, mainly due to the racial makeup of our country.
In 2014, The Heard Museum, The Philbrook Museum, and numerous newspapers celebrated the 100-year anniversary of the birth of Allan Houser. In 2015, The Wheelwright Museum expanded their gallery and debuted their Center for the Study of Southwestern Jewelry, which featured the work of Charles Loloma. In 2016 the Institute of American Indian Arts, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and the New Mexico Museum of Fine Arts celebrated the 100-year anniversary of the birth of Lloyd Kiva New. Finally, in 2016 the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art in Overland Park, Kansas debuted the opening of “Super Indian: Fritz Scholder 1967-1980.” This paper examines how these four artists influenced and ushered in a new era of Native American artwork. It also explores how the Institute of American Indian Arts facilitated opposition to established artistic canons serving as an incubator to develop breakaway artistic concepts. More importantly, this research questions the importance of the relationship between these artists and the Institute of American Indian Arts. Without the Institute would these artists have been as successful as they were, and without these four particular artists would the Institute have been as influential as it was? This research examines the contribution of each of these four individuals and the effect their work had on the success of the Institute of American Indian Arts.
2023
The 1943 art exhibition at the Mountain View Officers' Club (MVOC), Fort Huachuca, Arizona should be considered one of the most significant events in the intersection of American art, military history, and segregation. Organizers of the event, entitled Exhibition of the Work of 37 Negro Artists, anticipated it would boost soldiers' morale because Fort Huachuca was a predominately Black duty station during WWII. This report provides a brief history of Black art in the early 20th century, biographies of the artists showcased, and provides information (where known) about repositories that have originals or reproductions of the art today. The following is recommended: the General Services Administration (GSA) investigate the ownership of the pieces described in this report and if they are found to have been created under one of the New Deal art programs to add them to their inventory, further investigation be performed on the provenance and ownership of Lew Davis's The Negro in America's Wars mural, for the rehabilitation of the MVOC that the consulting parties agree upon the scope of the reproduction of the art, and request archival full reproductions of the pieces of art found in the collection of the Howard University Gallery of Art. DISCLAIMER: The contents of this report are not to be used for advertising, publication, or promotional purposes. Citation of trade names does not constitute an official endorsement or approval of the use of such commercial products. All product names and trademarks cited are the property of their respective owners. The findings of this report are not to be construed as an official Department of the Army position unless so designated by other authorized documents.
Artists' Books from the Home Museum: August 5-30, 2008
2008
Working within the framework of the museum rather than attempting to resist it, Karsten Bott, Portia Munson, Kelly Mark and Jac Leirner exemplify the current generation of artists who are critically engaged with the museum. In this thesis I will make the case that by using their own collections, rather than existing ones as previous generations of artists had done, these artists actively enact the traditional museological practices of collecting, classifying, and displaying objects as well as the related archival functions of storage and preservation. The work of these artists is reliant upon the museum as a site and draws attention to the institution's capacity to legitimize art. The result is a diverse set of works that raise questions about what kind of objects, people and experiences are recognized by the museum.