North America - History - General & Miscellaneous, North America - Antiquities, Native North American Peoples - Art & Artifacts, Native North American Peoples - Anthropology & Archaeology, Archaeology & Ancient Native North American Cultures

Native American Art Masterpieces

Name: Native American Art Masterpieces
Author: David W. Penney
ISBN: 9780883634967

by David W. Penney

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Overview

Native American art is the visual language of an extraordinary people, and its objects and images speak eloquently of a rich history and culture. Native American Art Masterpieces tells the story of that language, from its early origins in the Hopewell period that began in 200 B.C. through to modern-day America, with its powerful images by contemporary Native American artists like Jaune Quick-to-See-Smith and Margaret Tafoya. Forty-eight color reproductions, each accompanied by an essay exploring the art's cultural, historical, and ceremonial significance, reveal the deeply rooted traditions and innovative craftsmanship of the Native American aesthetic. In addition to the historic pieces which make up the core of traditional Native American art are works from modern-day masters, the painters and sculptors of the twentieth century. From the turn of the century to the present, Native artists have looked to the past and projected into the future in their efforts to identify "Native Indian art," and, as seen here in the works of artists such as George Longfish and Kay Walkingstick, their search has resulted in a body of work that confronts the issue with uncompromising directness.

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Editorials

Library Journal

The approach of this book is by artifact: 48 objects from various Native American tribal sources are depicted and described. The photography is stunning, and Penney, curator of Native American Art at the Detroit Institute of Arts, provides a thought-provoking essay on each artifact. However, the overall effect is to reveal the insidious pressures of coffee-table publishing on fine art book production. Readers are given inviting glimpses into the meanings of important pieces, whether traditional craft objects or fine art. Yet this information is only enough to whet the appetite for better understanding. Even the mixing of pre-20th century objects such as masks, effigies, and pottery with contemporary paintings and jewelry does not coherently explain the new definitions of "art" that the author wants to make. The book does not have a bibliography of any kind. Ultimately, this publication can be of use only to the very general reader or secondary school student, and even those individuals will want to know more about the objects and the cultures from which they came.-Paula A. Baxter, NYPL Poeschke, Joachim (text) & Albert Hirmer & Irmgard Ernstmeier-Hirmer (photogs).