The Spanish introduced the domesticated horse to the Indians of the Southwest, and, following the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the horse began to diffuse into the Plateau and Plains regions. With the horse, Indian cultures changed dramatically, and the importance of the horse can be seen in American Indian art.
In traditional American Indian societies art was functional, that is, it decorated utilitarian objects, giving them both beauty and spiritual power. As non-Indian art collectors began to take an interest in American Indian art, the nature of the art changed. At one level, we can distinguish three basic kinds of American Indian art: (1) traditional or tribal art which is produced for tribal members, (2) tourist art which is intended for the tourist market, and (3) Indian mainstream art, often produced by artists working in media common to non-Indian art traditions.
With regard to mainstream Indian art, Christian Feest, in his book Native Arts of North America, writes:
“Indian mainstream art is produced by artists who happen to be Indians.”
Christian Feest goes on to write:
“While the subject matter of their art is sometimes related to their ancestry or ethnic classification, their style is not.”
In both tribal and tourist art, the artist is often anonymous, but in mainstream Indian art the identity of the artist takes on great importance, particularly with regard to the perceived economic value of the artwork. In her chapter in A Wealth of Thought: Franz Boas on Native American Art, Aldona Jonaitis writes:
“From a perspective of western art history, to identify the artists as individuals removes them from the category ‘anonymous’ and places them in the category ‘fine artists.’ This change of category, of course, also serves to elevate the status of the artists in the minds of those who read this literature.”
In many museums today, there are displays of Indian art—tribal, tourist, and mainstream—in which Indian arts portray horses.
Maryhill Museum of Art
The Maryhill Museum located near Goldendale, Washington, has a display of Plateau beadwork. Shown below are the pieces showing horses.
Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon
Beaded bags are made and used throughout the Plateau area. The beaded bags are usually made from cloth and beaded on one side only. The beadwork is an appliqué technique in which the beads lie evenly over the surface of the bag in straight rows that extend from one side of the bag to the other. The main design is beaded first and then the background is beaded around it.
Shown below are some examples of Plateau Indian beadwork featuring horses which were on display at the Portland Art Museum.
Virgil “Smoker” Marchand
Shown below is a sculpture by the renown Colville artist Virgil “Smoker” Marchand showing spearing salmon from horseback. This is in the Methow Monument in the Memorial Park in Pateros, Washington.
Jay Laber
A special exhibit—Reborn Rez Wrecks—at the Missoula (Montana) Art Museum (MAM) features imaginative sculptures depicting traditional Native culture using found and salvaged metal by Blackfoot artist Jay Laber (1961-2019).
According to the museum description:
“A precise craftsman, Laber built large scale sculpture that weighed hundreds of pounds with tight tolerances. He would meticulously sift through hundreds of parts before selecting and inserting exactly the right piece to suggest or describe an essential detail. An expert at considering all the angles that sculpture might be viewed, he made his works appear active, kinetic, and full of energy.”
MAM is situated on the traditional, ancestral territories of the Séliš (Salish or “Flathead”) and Qlispé (upper Kalispel or Pend d’Oreille) peoples. MAM is committed to respecting the indigenous stewards of the land it occupies. Their rich cultures are fundamental to artistic life in Montana and to the work of MAM.
While the Spanish colonists in New Mexico brought horses into North America, the diffusion of the horse and its adoption by the Plains Indians began with the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. By the 1730s, the Blackfoot had obtained horses from the Shoshones. The horse quickly became more than a new form of transportation: they became a form of wealth, status, and prestige. The sculpture Pony was created in 2015-2016.
Warfare on the Northern Plains was common, but it was not usually waged by one tribe against another. Warfare was carried out by small, independent raiding parties rather than by large, organized armies. The motivation for war was personal gain, not tribal patriotism. Through participation in war an individual gained prestige, honor, and even wealth (as counted in horses.)
War honors were usually graded on the basis of the amount of courage displayed in winning them. Among the Blackfoot, the highest honors were given to capturing an enemy’s gun. Also ranked high were the capture of a bow, shield, war shirt, war bonnet, or ceremonial pipe. The taking of a scalp ranked below these things. The sculpture Sentinel was created in 1999.
HollyAnna Cougar Tracks DeCoteau Little Bull
HollyAnna Cougar Tracks DeCoteau Little Bull is a stone carver, beader, basket maker, seamstress, and saddle maker. Her tribal heritage is Yakama, Nez Perce, and Cayuse. Her work was displayed in As Grandmother Taught: Women, Tradition and Plateau Art was a special exhibit at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Washington.
Bernadine Phillips
One of the artists featured in As Grandmother Taught: Women, Tradition and Plateau Art was basket maker Bernadine Phillips (Okanagan/Wenatchi from the Colville Reservation).
Indians 101
Twice each week—on Tuesdays and Thursdays—this series presents American Indian topics. More about American Indian art from this series—
Indians 101: Some Northern Northwest Coast Baskets (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Anishinaabe Beadwork (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Tlingit clan hats (photo diary)
Indians 101: Contemporary American Indian Art (museum tour)
Indians 101: Reborn Rez Wrecks (museum tour)
Indians 101: Glass Art by Northwest Native Carvers and Weavers (Art Diary)
Indians 101: Exploring Glass Art by Native Artists (Art Diary)
Indians 101: Some Inuit Birds (Art Diary)