Native American Modernism
Native American modernism represents a “different” modernism from North America: the art of the indigenous peoples – the Native Americans or First Nations – that has been coevolving with Anglo-American art since the beginning of the 20th century.
Native American modernism refers to a type of art that blends elements rooted in indigenous traditions and influences from western art. The social movements of the 1960s have inspired new, distinct forms of expression in this art which, at the same time, engages with contemporary “western” art in a dialogue between equals.
Native American modernism is the art of an ethnic minority that struggles to hold its ground within a dominant American majority. Hence, it is always political.
This art finds expression in the local variants of the American Southwest, the Southern Plains, the Northeast, and the Northwest Coast, and has often been stimulated by innovative individual artists. Other artists have developed very distinct styles of their own and do not feel committed to any specific region or art tradition.
Native American modernism reflects a cultural diversity that still persists among the indigenous nations of Canada and the U.S. Traditional roots and contemporary reality are the sources of a creative potential that makes this art unique.
