By Ed Lowe
Senior Writer
This is the time of the year when youngsters are taught about the first Thanksgiving in 1621 They're presented with pictures of the Pilgrims receiving local Native Americans at their feast. Kids learn about the Indians' use of fish as fertilizer and their cultivation of corn. It's almost as if the Indians were waiting for the white European settlers to simply instruct them on the ways of the New World and to provide them with a ready made under-society to serve their needs.
The newly opened show at the Art Institute of Chicago gives the lie to this fable. The show, titled "Hero, Hawk and Open Hand" displays American Indian art from the ancient Midwest and South. In a civilization that dates back thousands of years before the arrival of European settlers, native peoples developed working societies that created art and culture which has only recently been excavated by archaeologists. More than 300 examples of this art are on display now.
Over the centuries, dating as far back as 5,000 B.C., diverse regional styles of art were developed. Various visual patterns and shared cultural themes attested to the interaction among these peoples who were disbursed across the woodlands, rivers and prairies of the Midwest and southern North American continent. Dozens of sites have been excavated and illuminate the diversity and yet the similarities of these peoples. The early societies participated in a world view with similar religious beliefs, common myths and rituals that are traced through the artifacts that have been found.
The Art Institute's exhibition, which will continue until Jan. 30 and then move on to St. Louis and complete its tour at Washington's Smithsonian Institution, shows some of the commonality of these beliefs and ideas. The Hero figure carries the idea of a superhuman creator-ancestor who is a champion against threatening alien forces. The Hawk is symbolic of the heights at which anointed leaders soar above the mass of people in their quest for spiritual purity and identity. And the Open Hand is a sign of possession, of sharing and of identity with the souls of ancestors. Together, these forms represent the basic elements of Native American societies before the advent of European value systems.
The 300 works on display were done in clay, stone, wood, shell, and copper. They represent a wide range of forms, from human, animal and vegetable shapes to abstract designs. The exhibit is arranged in a chronological timeline to show the evolution of both the skills of the artisans who created them and the ideas they were attempting to recreate.
While the art and artisanship of southwestern Native American peoples is well known, this display gives us the opportunity of seeing the lifestyles and aspirations of people who lived much closer to what we call home. Many special lectures and programs relating to the exhibition are planned; a full schedule is available at the Art Institute.
The Art Institute is located at Michigan Ave. and Adams St., across from the new Millennium Park. Recommended admission is $12; visitors may pay what they wish though they must pay something. Admission to "Hero, Hawk and Open Hand" is free to those who pay the admission price to enter the museum. Tuesdays are free days at the Art Institute. Also, Chicago residents can borrow "Great Kids Museum Passes" from the Chicago Public Libraries for free admission to the Art Institute and several other museums in the Chicago area. The Art Institute is closed on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. Call for other hours at (312) 443-3680. |
