Plains Indian Art at the Met March 2015

"I saw this exhibition when it opened in Kansas City. I said it then and I will repeat it now. This exhibition is the most important assembling of great objects since Sacred Circles opened in 1977.  Arguably with the inclusion of all the great objects from Europe one might opine that it is more important. For 2015 this is a must see if you are anywhere near New York City.

1. NEW YORK, NY.- "A major exhibition featuring extraordinary works created by Native American people of the Plains region will go on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, beginning March 9. Bringing together more than 150 iconic works from European and North American collections—many never before seen in a public exhibition in North America—The Plains Indians: Artists of Earth and Sky will explore the beauty, power, and spiritual resonance of Plains Indian art. Ranging from an ancient stone pipe and painted robes to drawings, paintings, collages, photographs, and a contemporary video installation, the exhibition will reflect the significant place that Plains Indian culture holds in the heritage of North America and in European history. It will also convey the continuum of hundreds of years of artistic tradition, maintained against a backdrop of monumental cultural change. A selection of modern and contemporary works not seen at other venues of the exhibition will provide a compelling narrative about the ongoing vitality of Plains art.
Thomas P. Campbell, Director and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum, said: "Through outstanding works of art from the Plains region, this ambitious exhibition demonstrates the long history of change and creative adaptation that characterizes Native American art. It is an important opportunity to highlight the artistic traditions that are indigenous to North America and to present them in the context of the Met's global collections."
Works on View
Drawn from 81 institutions and private collections in France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, and the United States, the exhibition will represent the art traditions of many Native Nations. The distinct Plains aesthetic will be revealed through an array of forms and media: sculptural works in stone, wood, antler, and shell; porcupine quill and glass-bead embroidery; feather work; painted robes; ornamented clothing; composite works; and ceremonial objects, works on paper, paintings, and photography.
Organized chronologically, the first gallery will showcase pre-contact works, including important sculptural pieces in stone and shell. One of the highlights in this room will be the 2,000-year-old Human Effigy Pipe made of pipestone, depicting a deified ancestor or mythical hero. Influential works from adjacent regions are included in this section.
The 19th-century works in the exhibition will include key pieces long associated with westward expansion. Among them are calumets, the long and elaborate pipes shared and given as gifts in the systems of protocol that were developed to establish diplomacy and trade between Europeans and the inhabitants of the “New World” whom they encountered on the Plains.
The reintroduction of the horse to North America by the Spanish, beginning at the end of the 16th century, revolutionized Plains Indians cultures in many ways—particularly as a boon to the buffalo hunt. In the exhibition, there will be a section presenting some of the best examples of 19th-century horse gear, weapons, clothing, and shields associated with a florescence of culture in the area. One highlight among them is a Lakota horse effigy, believed to honor and memorialize a horse that died in battle as the result of multiple gunshot wounds.
The substantial changes brought on by reservation life, beginning in the 19th century, engendered various artistic responses, ranging from instances of assimilation to acts of resistance to confinement. They will be conveyed by several masterworks in the exhibition, including important regalia used for the practice of prophetic religions. Among them are an elaborate bead-embroidered Otoe-Missouria Faw Faw coat with symbols, associated with ceremonialism and the desire to restore balance in a world that had become untenable; and a richly painted Arapaho Ghost Dance dress with visionary symbols associated with ritual practices.
Record books, paper, pencils, and ink were introduced on the Plains during the last quarter of the 19th century by settlers and traders. Among many fine examples of those included in the exhibition, the highlight will be The Maffet Ledger, a book consisting of 105 drawings, created by more than 20 Northern and Southern Cheyenne warrior artists to record their exploits in battle.
Modern and contemporary works of art will be exhibited near the end of the exhibition. Traditional-style works were still produced in the early 20th century for Wild West shows, agricultural fairs, and Fourth of July parades, and for the powwow, inter-tribal opportunities for the celebration of culture, dance, and art. Watercolors and “easel paintings” grew from long-standing Plains graphic traditions and through dialogue with other Native North American regions by the mid-20th century. Many fine examples of paintings from the era will be presented in the exhibition. Brilliantly executed beaded works by such artists as Joyce and Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty (b. 1950 and b. 1969, both Assiniboine-Sioux), Rhonda Holy Bear (b. 1959(?), Sans Arc, Two Kettle and Hunkpapa Lakota), and Jodi Gillette (b. 1959, Hunkpapa Lakota) will also be included in the exhibition.
The final gallery will also shed new light on 20th- and 21st-century works by artists of Plains descent, as well as by Native American artists from outside the region who have been inspired by its traditions. On view in this gallery will be one element of Edgar Heap of Bird’s (b. 1954, Cheyenne and Arapaho) site-specific installation Building Minnesota (1990), as well as a captivating four-channel video installation piece by Dana Claxton (b. 1959, Hunkpapa Lakota) called Rattle (2003) that incorporates the rhythmic images, colors, and sounds of artistic and spiritual life on the Plains, a perspective that endures in the exhibition galleries through the application of 21st-century media. " http://artdaily.com/news/76986/Exhibition-exploring-beauty--power--and-spiritual-resonance-of-Native-Indian-art-opens-at-the-Met#.VP4uTf50xGE

Some Thoughts From Kim

I would like to take a minute to thank you for your continued patronage of our appraisal services. I have seen some wonderful artworks this year, to include well established living artists like Jasper Johns, Julian Opie, Donald Sultan and Idelle Weber, to some perhaps less well known Texas artists like Cesar Martinez, Michael O’Keefe and Winter Rusiloski.  One of the more interesting challenges was determining the origin of a signed 1942 Dali drawing that was one of a limited edition insert in his 1942 autobiography “The Secret Life of Salvador Dali”. This pen & ink drawing was sold without specifying the details of its origin, and it was not clear whether it was one of the original drawings interspersed throughout his autobiography, part of another unknown edition, or even a very clever forgery.

 Appraising art always brings adventures, both large and small, and I feel privileged to be in this business. Every day I have the opportunity to traipse into the mind of the artist, and examine the fruit of the creative journey. For those of us who love art, it doesn’t get any better than that.

 Best wishes to you and your family for 2015,

Pre-Columbian Art

Maya polychrome Vase

AD 600 - 900

Peten, Guatemala

Ht. 6 1/2"

Foxworth Collection

Mochica Culture, Peru , 100 BC- 100 AD

Kneeling Royal Warrior Lord in Presentation.

Ex Eugene Lions Coll., Switzerland

Ht. 5 7/8"

Mochica Culture, Peru,100BC - 100 AD

Reclining Jaguar 

Private San Francisco Coll.

Length  8 1/2"

Extinction of Neanderthals - New Data

Early Man

1.PARIS (AFP).- Neanderthals shared Europe with modern humans for as long as five millennia until they died out 40,000 years ago -- "ample time" for cultural exchanges and interbreeding, researchers said on Wednesday. While there is no evidence that the two groups lived closely together, they did co-exist for anything from 25 to 250 generations, depending on the region, according to a paper published in the journal Nature. "The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600-5,400 years," wrote the researchers, who used improved technology to date about 200 samples of bone, charcoal and shell from 40 archaeological sites from Russia to Spain. This was "ample time for interaction and interbreeding," said a press statement.
In the latest attempt to date our cousins' final moments on Earth, the team found that Neanderthals disappeared at different times from different parts of Europe instead of being replaced by humans at one fell swoop. The question of how, why and when Neanderthals became extinct, leaving humans to take over, has long fascinated scientists. Some have postulated a much more recent disappearance. Anatomically-modern humans, having originated in Africa, reached Europe between 50,000 and 30,000 years ago, finding Neanderthals there. Their brief interaction resulted in non-African people today carrying about 1.5-2.1 percent Neanderthal DNA. According to the new, six-year study, Europe 45,000 years ago was still occupied mainly by Neanderthals with small pockets of humans in between. This balanced shifted over the following 5,000 years, until the Neanderthals eventually disappeared, the paper said. Rather than modern humans abruptly replacing their distant cousins, there appears to have been a progressive change "characterised by a biological and cultural mosaic that lasted for several thousand years," the researchers wrote. They said theirs was the most accurate dating yet of this period in history. Reliable radiocarbon dating is often rendered difficult by the degradation of carbon in bone or rock samples older than 25,000 years.
"Previous radiocarbon dates have often underestimated the age of samples from sites associated with Neanderthals because the organic matter was contaminated with modern particles," said study leader Thomas Higham of Oxford University. "We used ultrafiltration methods, which purify the extracted collagen from bone, to avoid the risk of contamination. "This means we can say with more confidence that we have finally resolved the timing of the disappearance of our close cousins, the Neanderthals." The study did not reach a conclusion on whether there had been a single human-Neanderthal interbreeding event, or several over time. "Of course the Neanderthals are not completely extinct, because some of their genes are in most of us today," said Higham.
http://artdaily.com/news/72293/Neanderthals-and-humans-were-both-living-in-Europe-for-between-2-600-and-5-400-years#.VF1b9P50zVk

Christmas Facts

Christmas History
Decorations

"A typical Neapolitan presepe/presepio, or Nativity scene. Local crèches are renowned for their ornate decorations and symbolic figurines, often mirroring daily life.The practice of putting up special decorations at Christmas has a long history. In the 15th century, it was recorded that in London it was the custom at Christmas for every house and all the parish churches to be "decked with holm, ivy, bays, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be green".[132] The heart-shaped leaves of ivy were said to symbolize the coming to earth of Jesus, while holly was seen as protection against pagans and witches, its thorns and red berries held to represent the Crown of Thorns worn by Jesus at the crucifixion and the blood he shed.
Nativity scenes are known from 10th-century Rome. They were popularised by Saint Francis of Asissi from 1223, quickly spreading across Europe. Different types of decorations developed across the Christian world, dependent on local tradition and available resources, and can vary from simple representations of the crib to far more elaborate sets - renowned manger scene traditions include the colourful Kraków szopka in Poland,which imitate Kraków's historical buildings as settings, the elaborate Italian presepi (Neapolitan, Genoese and Bolognese),or the Provençal crèches in southern France, using hand-painted terracotta figurines called santons. In certain parts of the world, notably Sicily, living nativity scenes following the tradition of Saint Francis are a popular alternative to static crèches.The first commercially produced decorations appeared in Germany in the 1860s, inspired by paper chains made by children.In countries
where a representation of the Nativity scene is very popular, people are encouraged to compete and create the most original or realistic ones. Within some families, the pieces used to make the representation are considered a valuable family heirloom.

The traditional colors of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Jesus, which was shed in his crucifixion, while green symbolizes eternal life, and in particular the evergreen tree, which does not lose its leaves in the winter, and gold is the first color associated with Christmas, as one of the three gifts of the Magi, symbolizing royalty. On Christmas Day, the Christ Candle in the center of the Advent wreath is traditionally lit in many church services. The Christmas tree is considered by some as Christianisation of pagan tradition and ritual surrounding the Winter Solstice, which included the use of evergreen boughs, and an adaptation of pagan tree worship;[146] according to eighth-century biographer Æddi Stephanus, Saint Boniface (634–709), who was a missionary in Germany, took an axe to an oak tree dedicated to Thor and pointed out a fir tree, which he stated was a more fitting object of reverence because it pointed to heaven and it had a triangular shape, which he said was symbolic of the Trinity. The English language phrase "Christmas tree" is first recorded in 1835 and represents an importation from the German language. The modern Christmas tree tradition is believed to have begun in Germany in the 18th century though many argue that Martin Luther began the tradition in the 16th century.

From Germany the custom was introduced to Britain, first via Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, and then more successfully by Prince Albert during the reign of Queen Victoria. By 1841 the Christmas tree had become even more widespread throughout Britain. By the 1870s, people in the United States had adopted the custom of putting up a Christmas tree.Christmas trees may be decorated with lights and ornaments.
Since the 19th century, the poinsettia, a native plant from Mexico, has been associated with Christmas. Other popular holiday plants include holly, mistletoe, red amaryllis, and Christmas cactus. Along with a Christmas tree, the interior of a home may be decorated with these plants, along with garlands and evergreen foliage. The display of Christmas villages has also become a tradition in many homes during this season. The outside of houses may be decorated with lights and sometimes with illuminated sleighs, snowmen, and other Christmas figures. Other traditional decorations include bells, candles, candy canes, stockings, wreaths, and angels. Both the displaying of wreaths and candles in each window are a more traditional Christmas
display. The concentric assortment of leaves, usually from an evergreen, make up Christmas wreaths and are designed to prepare Christians for the Advent season. Candles in each window are meant to demonstrate the fact that Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the ultimate light of the world.

Christmas lights and banners may be hung along streets, music played from speakers, and Christmas trees placed in prominent places. It is common in many parts of the world for town squares and consumer shopping areas to sponsor and display decorations. Rolls of brightly colored paper with secular or religious Christmas motifs are manufactured for the purpose of wrapping gifts. In some countries, Christmas decorations are traditionally taken down on Twelfth Night, the evening of January 5." wikipedia.org