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ON THE COVER
Coyote, which artist Harry Fonseca (Nisenan Maidu) dubs the “infamous
Native American folk hero” in this acrylic-on-canvas work “Shuffle Off
to Buffalo,” takes to the stage in an upcoming exhibition at the
National Museum of the American Indian.
FEATURES
Frame Those Blankets: Weaving New Traditions
Native artists have embraced a new medium: the contemporary trade
blanket. And it’s turning the art-collecting world upside down. By
Charles J. Lohrmann.
Tewa Tales: Yo! Ken Alfonso Here
The late anthropologist Alfonso Ortiz (San Juan Pueblo) altered the
world’s view of the Native American, and he did so in unconventional
ways, as a friend and UCLA professor explains. By Kenneth Lincoln.
Poetry in Wood
The Northwest Coast Unangan creation story comes alive in the
sculptures of John Hoover (Unangan), including those now gracing the
lobby of the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage. By Sunnie
Empie. Photos by Hart Empie.
Seeing (a Different Shade of) Red
Forget the stereotype of stoic Indian faces. Native Americans have been
laughing for a long time. By Suzan Shown Harjo (Cheyenne & Hodulgee
Muskogee). Illustrated with works by George Blake (Hupa/Yurok), Jack
Malotte (Western Shoshone), Judith Lowry (Maidu/Pit River), Marcus
Amerman (Choctaw), Jeffery Chapman (Chippewa) and Marwin Begaye (Diné).
Warrior Artists
Prisoners of war more than 120 years ago, the spirits of these Kiowa
and Comanche men live through their powerful drawings in a
soon-to-be-published book by the National Geographic Society. By Herman
J. Viola. Drawings by Zotom.
Reclaiming Culture
A people once thought extinct will come alive when the Mashantucket
Pequot Museum and Research Center opens in Connecticut. By Ben Winton
(Yaqui).
Drawing the Line
George Russell got tired of getting stumped when his non-Indian
co-workers asked him about Native America. So he did something about
it, producing an informative large-scale map of Indian America. By
George Russell (Saginaw Chippewa).
DEPARTMENTS
Viewpoint
Renowned author N. Scott Momaday (Kiowa), winner of the Pulitzer Prize,
explains in a question-and-answer format why he’s taken time from his
busy schedule to launch a nonprofit organization, the Buffalo Trust.
Viewpoint
Indian journalists are vitally needed to tell stories from a Native
perspective and to raise cultural sensitivities. By Ben Winton (Yaqui).
Spirit of the Harvest
No food is more important to the peoples of the Northwest than salmon,
explored in text and a recipe for roasted salmon steaks. By Beverly Cox
and Martin Jacobs.
Collector’s Corner
Tips on the best ways to conserve valuable textile arts. By fiber artist Margaret Wood (Navajo/Seminole).
Book Reviews
People of the Seventh Fire: Returning Lifeways of Native America,
edited by Dagmar Thorpe (Sauk/Thakiwaki); The Long March: The Choctaw’s
Gift to Irish Famine Relief, written and illustrated by Marie-Louise
Fitzpatrick. By Alan Tack.
Video/Audio Reviews
Eagle and the Raven: A Purification by Banishment, a video directed by
George Amiotte (Lakota) from Heaven Fire Productions; Blues From the
Sky, by Indigenous; and The Ghosts of St. Augustine, by Tonemah
(Kiowa/Comanche/Tuscarora). By David Claudio Iglesias (Kuna).
Artist in Profile
Extraordinary basket weaver and bead artist Ennis Pack (Mountain Maidu) of northeastern California. By Linda Martin (Diné).
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