Two Contemporary Native Artists: Jaune Quick-To-See Smith and Preston Singletary   

Historically, American Indian art has been relegated to natural history museums, not fine art institutions. This injustice is being rectified in the 21st century with exhibitions by Native artists appearing in major art venues. In this course, we will consider two Native artists with strong ties to Washington state. Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (b. 1940, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes) will have a major retrospective at the Seattle Art Museum February 29 - May 12. Funny, angry, and urgent, Smith’s work uses western modernist techniques (collage, abstraction, pop) to evoke the history and experience of American Indians vis-à-vis a majority white culture. Preston Singletary (b. 1963, Tlingit), a Seattleite almost since birth, is a glass artist who incorporates designs and themes from his Pacific Northwest Coast cultural heritage, transforming the ancient stories into stunning objects and installations that are at once timeless and contemporary.