Ledger Art Talking Points

Teacher Workshop, 11.12.11 Plains Pictorial Drawings In Native languages there is usually no word for art although designs and decorations on clothing, utilitarian,,and personal objects may be classified as such today. Beautification of objects served many purposes, one being a form of personal expression; Plains pictorial drawings are an example of this. Pictorial drawings done by various cultures of the Great Plains date back centuries and can be found painted on stone, bone, and hides. They can be categorized in three ways: o Narrative: Drawings which tell stories of personal experiences such as hunting and military exploits, courtships, ceremonial, and social events o Record Keeping: Drawings which specifically recount events of historical importance, often these are used as mnemonic devices or calendar systems o Visionary: Drawings of personal spiritual experiences such as those encountered during vision quests or in dreams Typically, in Plains societies, pictorial drawings were done only by men o Natural earth pigments such as iron ore, red and yellow ochre, and zinc were used to paint with among other minerals and plants The colors red, yellow, black and white are commonly used among Plains people and many consider these colors sacred and have spiritual meaning o Bone, stone, and wood implements were used to apply the paints to the surface of the hide, stone or bone. The vertebrae bones near the hump of the bison make a good paint brush because they are porous and soak up paint. Pictorial drawings are not a uniform system of writing; each person recorded events differently and symbols could have different meanings among culture groups Figures are drawn abstractly, not to scale, and are two-dimensional o Human figures are often drawn in a frontal or side view with little detail to the form Greater detail on personal regalia and weaponry often identify the person or tribe they are from; for example, the way a persons hair is drawn may signify tribal identify. Feet turned to one side indicate movement in that direction Action elements include animal footprints, bullet lines, etc. In some cases, there is little concern for spatial elements and events may be scattered across a hide. In others, such as calendar systems, pictures are placed in specific arrangements to convey relationships of time

Teacher Workshop Ledger Art Talking Points Draft-Mandy Foster

11/11/2011

Ledger Art Talking Points

Teacher Workshop, 11.12.11 What is Ledger Art? Ledger art is a form of Plains pictorial art that dates back a little over a century. Its origins began roughly between 1860 1900 and it continues today in the genre of fine art The term ledger refers to a type of paper or book used for record keeping which was introduced to Natives by Europeans o These papers became the canvas for pictorial drawings by Plains men of various tribes

Major Transitions in Plains Culture During the period from 1860 1900 major changes occurred in the daily lives of Plains people o As westward expansion progressed through Plains territories, conflicts arose between Native tribes and encroaching Europeans. Battles, raids and wars were continuous and led to the involvement of the U.S. military in a plight to remove tribes from their traditional lands o By 1880, most tribes were forcefully relocated onto reservation lands, their traditional way of life forever altered. Access to resources was often denied or unavailable. o By 1900, Buffalo were hunted and slaughtered to near extinction, thus forcing Plains people to rely on rations issued by the U.S. government. The beginning of the reservation era brought an entirely different lifestyle to the people of the plains. Emergence of Ledger Art By 1860, Plains people were growing accustom to utilizing goods acquired through trade with Europeans. Men incorporated these new materials such as ink, colored pencils and later, watercolors into their pictorial drawings. o As conflicts arose with Europeans, Plains men continued recording these events as they unfolded, utilizing the new materials acquired through trade

Teacher Workshop Ledger Art Talking Points Draft-Mandy Foster

11/11/2011

Ledger Art Talking Points

Teacher Workshop, 11.12.11

In 1875, at the end of the Southern Plains Wars, U.S. troops captured 72 influential leaders from the Kiowa, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Caddo and Comanche and imprisoned them at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, FL until 1878. o It was here that prisoners were encouraged to recount their personal stories and tribal histories using the pictorial drawings with whatever resources were available. o Prisoners were given pencils, pens, and watercolors to recount their experiences in ledger books, autograph books, and sketchbooks. Many of the books had been previously used and the men simply drew over the writing. o Accounts were made of daily life in the prison camps as well as memories of tribal life, celebrations, and ceremonies. Men often recorded their new experiences and surroundings including observations of western daily life, cities and technology, as well as the conditions of oppression and assimilation to which they were subjected.

By 1900, the diminishment and unavailability of natural resources forced assimilation and adaptation of Plains people to westernized society. Old traditions of narrative pictorial drawing on hides were transformed with the use of new materials. Today this type of activity is known as Ledger Art. As assimilation policy toward Native people continued through the first half of the 20th century, people struggled to balance these changes with their traditional culture. o Many children were removed from the community and taken to boarding schools where they were taught European language, culture, religion, and industry. o However, the technique of narrative pictorial drawing of traditional culture continued and in some cases was encouraged and flourished within these institutes such as the Santa Fe Indian School; a boarding school founded in 1890 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. o In 1932, a teacher at Santa Fe Indian School named Dorothy Dunn opened The Studio, a painting program designed for Native students to create work influenced by their cultural traditions. Here, the pictorial one-dimensional style

Teacher Workshop Ledger Art Talking Points Draft-Mandy Foster

11/11/2011

Ledger Art Talking Points

Teacher Workshop, 11.12.11

influenced by plains pictorial drawings and those of the Pueblos was highly encouraged and taught.

o Visual narratives drawn on paper became a stepping stone for Native artisans to enter into mainstream American fine arts. Today, Ledger Art can be seen as an expression of the perseverance of Native people and culture through the vast tribulations of the recent past. Considered a fine art form today, Ledger Art continues as one form of expression for both male and female artists. These Native men and women continue the tradition of their ancestors as respected artists within the world of fine art today.

Teacher Workshop Ledger Art Talking Points Draft-Mandy Foster

11/11/2011

Ledger Art Talking Points

REFERENCES

Teacher Workshop, 11.12.11 A Song for the Horse Nation: Horses in Native American Cultures http://www.nmai.si.edu/exhibitions/horsenation/ Berlo, Janet Catherine. Plains Indian Drawings. Spring 1997. Online: Tribalarts.com. http://www.tribalarts.com/feature/plains/index.html History of Plains Indian Ledger Art, Plains Indian Ledger Art Project. University of CaliforniaSan Diego. 2005 Ross Frank. Kiowa Drawings. National Museum of Natural History: Kiowa Drawings in the National Anthropological Archives. Online 3/5/2010 http://www.nmnh.si.edu/naa/kiowa/kiowa.htm Keeping History: Plains Indian Ledger Drawings. National Museum of American History: Albert H. Small Documents Gallery. Online 3/5/2010. http://americanhistory.si.edu/documentsgallery/exhibitions/ledger_drawing_1.html
Plains Indian Ledger Art Project

Online 11.03.11 https://plainsledgerart.org/ Rutherford B. Hayes papers Online 11.03.11 http://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/manunews/paper_trail_display.asp?nid=33&subj=manu news

Other Websites http://wintercounts.si.edu/ http://www.americanindian.si.edu/wintercount/ http://www.nmnh.si.edu/naa/scout/

Teacher Workshop Ledger Art Talking Points Draft-Mandy Foster

11/11/2011