Category Archives: Collector’s Corner

The Oregon Coast is rugged and visually stunning.  It is also rich in history, though much of it lies just below the surface of what the average visitor sees. There are tantalizing clues, however, in place names such as Clatsop, Nehalem, Tilamook, Coos Bay, Yachats, and Coquile, all of which are taken from Native American […]

For those who are not Native American it may be difficult to understand why those who are, particularly Pueblo people, remain passionate about the Pueblo Revolt of 1680.  While for non-Natives this historical event is thought of as ancient history, for Native Americans it is an open wound – a reminder that their independence and […]

Most often inspired by an idea, Shan Goshorn worked in a variety of media, but her social commentary baskets became her signature work.  Much sought after by collectors, these striking and thought provoking creations employ a diverse range of Cherokee basket forms and weaving patterns.  However, rather than using traditional white or river cane splints, […]

To some, ceramic art produced by Native Americans, particularly women, is simply craft.  It doesn’t help that the entire output of these artists is referred to by the generic term pottery.  Of course, skill and craft are involved in the creation of a ceramic work, but many pieces are rightly considered art.  The discussion of […]

Over the last fifty years, Cape Dorset has been the only Canadian Arctic community that has consistently been able to attract and maintain a large group of international collectors.  This is due to the support of the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative, the marketing and promotion of Dorset Fine Arts and, most importantly, the willingness of […]

Santa Fe is so enchanting that many visitors never venture beyond it.  Rich in history, culture and cuisines, the City Different has much to offer.  However, venturing outside Santa Fe adds depth and richness to any visit.  Over the years, I have traveled to historic and archaeological sites as well as parks noted for their […]

Known for her strong visual style, her powerful use of color, and her distinctive sense of humor, as well as her talent for presenting traditional aspects of Inuit culture in a unique way, Ningiukulu Teevee is one of Cape Dorset’s rising stars  Hers is a decidedly contemporary sensibility and there is no other Inuit graphic […]

Early in 2016, Jason Garcia E-mailed me, writing that he was in the process of beginning a series of prints about the 1680 Pueblo Revolt and asked if I would be interested in acquiring each work as he created it.  This was certainly an ambitious undertaking and, at the time, it was not clear how […]

In all of contemporary Inuit art, there is no one quite like Shuvinai Ashoona.  Celebrated for her dark sense of humor, Shuvinai (as she is known to gallerists and collectors) has staked out a territory that is all her own.  By juxtaposing the familiar with the bizarre the artist creates a disturbing sense of disorientation […]

As a collector, I am always interested in acquiring new works.  For many years the focus of my collecting was historic and, then later, contemporary pottery created by Native American artists.  However, sometime around 2008 I became aware that a number of Pueblo ceramic artists, such as Jason Garcia, Diego Romero, and Virgil Ortiz, were […]

              “They’re all trade canoes, something is being traded and in most of my political statements it’s about money being traded for quality of life.” Jaun  e Quick-to-See Smith   In the summer of 2009 I visited the Indiana University Art Museum in Bloomington.  When I reached the very end of Art of the Western […]

Sometime around 2008 I encountered Kent Monkman’s work for the first time.  It took me a few minutes to realize that what I was looking at were more than modern versions of classic paintings.  I stared, fascinated by each piece and then came suddenly to the realization of the the provocative aspects of what I […]

For collectors of contemporary Inuit prints, October is the most important time of year since this is when the Annual Cape Dorset Print Collection, consisting of over thirty works, is released.  Anticipation is high among aficionados in Canada, the U.S. and Europe.  The prints are produced in editions of fifty, with the rare exception of […]

Rising to a height of 11,240 feet above sea level, with a base spanning ninety-two miles, Mount Hood is one of the West Coast’s most spectacular natural wonders.  It is the highest mountain in Oregon and the fourth highest in the Cascade Volcanic Arch, a range of mountains stretching from Mount Garibaldi in British Columbia […]

Not long ago I was invited to attend a reception for a small art exhibition in Manhattan.  During two separate conversations, I learned something that I had not realized before: Some people are intimidated by museums.  I first encountered this feeling when speaking to a young man in this twenties.  He told me that the […]

The term Inuit art encompasses a diverse range of media, subject matter, genres, and themes which, as a collector, continues to fascinate me.  I have been continually surprised to discover strange, surrealistic masterpieces among the early works and equally amazed by the explorations and experimentation of younger Inuit artists. Inuit people have been creating art […]

Artists who continually experiment and explore hold the interest of collectors who anxiously wait to see what they will create next.  Les Namingha is such an artist.  It is astounding that he is able to produce so many astonishingly diverse works.  Each of his pieces is unique.  Mr. Namingha uses the ceramic medium much like […]

Much of Courtney M. Leonard’s work is a response to the maritime influences that shaped the lives of her ancestors.  She is a member of the Shinnecock tribe whose ancestral lands are located on the southeastern shore of what is today Long Island, New York.  The 750-acre Shinnecock Indian Reservation is located about 3 miles […]

In March 2017, I was invited by the Feheley Fine Arts Gallery in Toronto to attend Art on Paper.  This art fair, held in New York City, is designed to highlight works on paper.  I spent a great deal of time with Pat Feheley, owner of the gallery, looking over Inuit prints and drawings that […]

It is hard to believe that it has been just over twenty years since I first stumbled upon Two Old Women by Velma Wallis while I was visiting Fort Yukon, Alaska, the author’s hometown.   At the time, I was still teaching and looking for books that I could use with my English classes.  The fact […]

The first time I saw the Zuni murals in the early 1990s they appeared to be in pristine condition.  Alex Seowtewa and his sons were in the process of completing them and as I marveled at their vibrant colors and extraordinary beauty I thought that calling them “America’s Sistine Chapel” would not be an exaggeration.  […]

Many years ago, when I was attending elementary school, my geography book contained a photograph of Crater Lake.  It is an image I never forgot.  Even at that young age, I knew that someday I wanted to visit this natural wonder.  Although I traveled to Oregon in 2003, I was not able to achieve my […]

Each time I have traveled to the Hopi Mesas I have been struck by the hospitality and generosity of the people.  However, too often the mainstream press has portrayed the Hopi as rigid and unwelcoming whenever they have closed their lands to outsiders.  Usually omitted, though, is the fact that the actions of the Hopi […]

As a collector, one of my very few regrets is never having met Rick Bartow.  I have been an admirer of his work since 2003 when I saw Continuum: 12 Artists at the National Museum of the American Indian in Manhattan.  I had never seen anything like Bartow’s pieces before and determined to know more […]

In August, 2016 the Case Trading Post at the Wheelwright Museum presented From the Sketchbooks of T. C., an exhibit and sale of fifty plus pieces from the T.C. Cannon Estate, including previously unseen work.  When I first looked into his work, I had the impression that T. C. Cannon was predominantly interested in Native […]

Recently, I came to the conclusion that, although I have ledger drawings from the 1800s and many contemporary Native American prints and drawings in my collection, it contains no Native works on paper from the early to mid-twentieth century.  As a collector, it is important to me that, as much as possible, all areas of […]

For over twenty-five years, collecting Inuit works on paper has been an exciting and often exhilarating experience. Of course, the high point of each year is the release of the Annual Cape Dorset Print Collection. This year the collection contains twenty-seven works in a variety of print media – stonecut, stonecut & stencil, linocut, lithography, […]

That art produced by contemporary Native American artists is American art is hardly a profound statement.  In fact, the idea seems obvious.  However, although there are notable exceptions such as the Denver Art Museum and the Brooklyn Museum, the work of contemporary Native American artists is rarely exhibited in encyclopedic art museums, including those dedicated […]

Much has been written about the decidedly modernist baskets created by Shan Goshorn but little, if anything, has documented her artistic process so that viewers can understand how these marvelous works of art (perhaps best deemed sculptures) come to be.  At first glance, Goshorn’s baskets appear to be benign, even traditional.  What draws viewers in […]

Because his art shatters stereotypical preconceptions, many collectors are surprised to learn that Glen Nipshank is Native American.  They are equally surprised that his tribal affiliation is Big Stone Cree since most collectors of Native American ceramic art predominantly collect works by Pueblo artists.  Nipshank explores form, color and shading in his ceramics, most of […]

An artist’s vision often outpaces the expectations of collectors, curators, and critics since innovations are very different from shortcuts and often require more time, rather than less, to execute.  Truly great artists know this.  Although they may push the boundaries of their art, artists know that an innovation must be artistically grounded, not a mere […]

Artists never know what will inspire them. The sources are myriad – personal experience, Nature, literature, or the work of other artists to name a few. In 2011, I began to acquire a group stencils and a collage by Eliza Naranjo Morse that were part of And We Will Live Off the Fat of the […]

There have always been farsighted people who have recognized great artists and acquired their work long before it was sought after by the majority of collectors or exhibited in galleries and museums. In the 1920s Gertrude Stein was buying up paintings by Picasso while he was still relatively unknown.  Around the middle of the 20th […]

Collectors become aware of artists in a variety of ways.  Often it is through museum and gallery exhibits; sometimes it is via gallery and artists’ web sites; and in many instances an artist’s work may be recommended by gallerists or curators.  In the case of Linley B. Logan, I just sort of stumbled upon him.  […]

Collectors become aware of artworks they wish to acquire in a variety of ways.  From May 1 through July 5, 2015, the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa Hardesty Arts Center presented INTERTWINED, STORIES OF SPLINTERED PASTS: Shan Goshorn & Sarah Sense.  Although I could not see the exhibit in person, the artists gifted me […]

The most exciting time of year for collectors of Inuit prints is the October release of the Annual Cape Dorset Print Collection, consisting of over thirty works.  Since prints are produced in editions of fifty each, with the rare exception of one or two prints with a run of one hundred, anticipation is high among […]

Most people would never connect a 1960s Hollywood movie about an ancient Egyptian queen, staring Elizabeth Taylor, with a Native artist and an Italian-American collector and expect the combination to result in a wok of art.  They would be surprised to learn that this very mixture produced Elizabeth as Cleopatra by Sarah Sense. I was […]

One of the earliest catalysts of my passion for Native art was the Brooklyn Museum.  It was there, in the early 1980s, that I first saw the pottery of Lucy Lewis, an event that set me on a journey of over thirty years collecting ceramic art created by Native artists.  That experience was also the […]

Drawing from a seemingly endless well of creativity, Susan Folwell and Les Namingha are two of the most exciting and innovative contemporary American artists.  Their predominant medium is ceramics, which they use much like a painter employs canvas or a sculptor stone or wood.  Folwell is constantly pushing this art form in new directions – […]

Whenever I am confronted by the work of Sonya Kelliher-Combs I feel as if I’m on an artistic magical mystery tour.  I never know where I am being taken but the journey is always thrilling, filled with revelations, secrets, metaphors, portraits and original ideas.  Through her idiosyncratic imagery and use of unusual materials in unique […]

When I first encountered Inuit art I knew nothing about it but the more I saw the more intrigued I became.  Visits to Vancouver and Toronto fueled my curiosity.  With a little research, I discovered that the Arctic Artistry Gallery which specialized in Inuit art was only about two miles from where I lived.  Over […]

As a collector, I can say in all honesty that I never know what type of art will attract my attention.  Lately, I am mostly drawn to abstract works rather than those that are representational.  When the 2014 Cape Dorset Annual Print Collection was released (the highpoint of the year for collectors of Inuit prints) […]

Collecting is a learning process, or it should be, in my opinion.  In order to remain relevant, collectors and collections must continually evolve.  Although, over the years, I have acquired many different types of Native art, I began with pottery and, though I am fast running out of space, I still can never resist an […]

More than ever before Native artists are challenging ideas of what it means to be both Native and an artist.  They are expanding Native art beyond traditional boundaries and refusing to be confined by anyone else’s notions of what their art should or should not be.  Nothing, be it themes, materials, or forms, is off […]

Each year scores of tourists are drawn to Alaska’s Pribilof Islands by the prospect of seeing millions of animals in their natural habitat.  Most, however, are totally unaware that the “Galápagos of the North” was once the site of a shocking human tragedy that lasted more than 200 years.             The history of the Unungan, […]

The purpose of art is not merely to be decorative. Great art forces us to see the world around us from a unique perspective. While art can be beautiful it can also be unsettling, shocking, or thought provoking. The work of great artists not only elicits an emotional response but, also challenges us to think […]

Late in her life, Inuit artist Napachie Pootogook began to create a series of drawings documenting life as it was once lived by her people, thereby creating a body of work the likes of which had not been seen before.  At the time Napachie produced these works, what collectors, curators and the general public wanted […]

As a former teacher, I tend to view all educational institutions with a critical eye and, it would be fair to say that, it takes a great deal to impress me.  It seems that there is often so much cant where education is concerned.  However, a school that clearly fosters learning, artistic talent and a […]

          Sometimes in order to go forward it is necessary to go backward.  This is especially true for artists who, for inspiration, often turn to earlier artistic forms, such as ledger art, or to a time in life that was particularly painful or fraught with struggles.  In addition, contemporary Native American […]

For well over a century, images of Native Americans have been flashed across movie screens worldwide.  The tales of “wild Indians” and “noble savages” that audiences devoured as emblematic of the American West were illusions on more than one level.  For the most part, the stories have been fictitious but, even when based on fact, […]

In the minds of many, Native American artists are inexorably linked with what has come to be known as the “traditional arts” – pottery, baskets, beadwork and such.  However, while many contemporary Native artists still work in these media, more often than not, they execute their art in decidedly modernist ways.  Other contemporary Native artists […]

Acquiring art for my collection has been an enjoyable process, except for figuring out how to pay for it.  Usually, that has been solved with payment plans.  In almost thirty years of collecting I’ve purchased pieces for my collection from shops, galleries, trading posts and directly from artists.  Often, art was collected while traveling and, […]