Original Oil Painting “Tipi No. 11” [SOLD]

George Catlin was one of the first white men to record the Plains Indians in their native territory. He traveled to the American West five times in the 1830s. According to Catlin, “The Crows, of all the tribes in this region, or on the Continent, make the most beautiful lodge.” To this day, the Crow pride themselves on the size and beauty of their tipis. This painting by the prominent Crow artist Kevin Red Star honors the beauty and grandeur of the traditional tipi in a modern way.

Red Star was born and raised on the Crow reservation in Lodge Grass, Montana. His parents were both artists and he grew up with an appreciation of looking at the world and recording it in an artistic manner. He was one of the first 150 students to attend the newly opened Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe where he learned new and different approaches of representing his world.

This painting of a Crow tipi captures the pride the Crow have taken in their traditional homes. The lines suggest stability and strength. The bold colors evoke a feeling of pride of craftsmanship. Kevin Red Star is a contemporary artist who has taken his inspiration from the images and culture of the traditional ways of his ancestors and presented them in a vibrant, modern way.

Condition: original condition

Recommended Reading:  The Sweet Grass Lives On: Fifty Contemporary North American Indian Artists by Jamake Highwater

Provenance: The painting was purchased in 1990 by the current owners, Marvin and Betty Rubin