Since the beginning of time, according to tribal oral traditions, the people have lived along the Columbia River and its tributaries in the Columbia Plateau. Among traditional American Indian people “art” was not a concept distinct from everyday life. Art was simply incorporated into the things people made as a way of enhancing their aesthetic … Continued
In providing a broad overview of the hundreds of distinct American Indian cultures found in North America, it is common for museums, historians, archaeologists, and ethnologists to use a culture area model. This model is based on the observation that different groups of people living in the same geographic area often share many cultural features. … Continued
The Maryhill Museum located near Goldendale, Washington, has a display of Plateau containers. The Plateau Culture Area is the area between the Cascade Mountains and the Rocky Mountains in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, British Columbia, and Western Montana. From north to south it runs from the Fraser River in the north to the Blue Mountains in … Continued
As Grandmother Taught: Women, Tradition and Plateau Art was a special exhibit at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Washington. The Plateau Culture Area is basically the area between the Cascade Mountains and the Rocky Mountains. According to the Museum display: “Women have been the primary makers of the functional forms necessary … Continued
The Aleutian Islands are a chain which extend into the Pacific Ocean from the tip of the Alaska Peninsula. This is an area which is cold and damp, with few trees. In spite of this seemingly inhospitable environment, people have been living on the islands for at least 9,000 years. The Native people who inhabit … Continued
Today, the Columbia River marks the boundary between Oregon and Washington. The river was named for the ship Columbia Rediviva whose captain, John Gray, sailed into the area in 1792. Gray was the first of many Euroamerican fur traders who would invade the area over the next half century. American Indians had lived along the … Continued
The Northwest Coast culture is located geographically along the Pacific Coast north of California and between the Cascade Mountains and the ocean. This area is the home to many Indian nations who traditionally based their economy on the use of sea coast and river ecological resources. The Haida are located in the northern portion of … Continued
The Pueblos are the village agriculturists of New Mexico and Northern Arizona. Zuni Pueblo is located in New Mexico and its name comes from Spanish corruption of the Keresan word Sunyi. The native name for the pueblo is A’shiwi which means “the flesh.” Fetishes are objects which can be made from many different materials which … Continued
The Northwest Coast culture area stretches along the Pacific coast between the Cascade Mountains and the ocean. It extends north of California to Alaska. This is an area which is the home to many Indian nations who traditionally based their economy on the use of sea coast and river ecological resources. The Northwest Coast culture … Continued
The Inuit are a Native American people whose homelands are in the Canadian Arctic. A special exhibit at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Washington, featured The Inuit Art of Povungnituk. Povungnituk is a village on the eastern shores of Hudson Bay in Arctic Quebec. This artwork provides some insights into the … Continued
