“For centuries, art and handcrafts have played an important role in the religious and social lives of Indigenous peoples. Throughout our Native American history, it has been no different. The images you see in almost all designs used in Native American arts and crafts are religious. Even the hand processes used in creating such works reflect an individual artisan’s relationship with the tools that begin with a beating heart, mind and spirit. Our ties to this earth and to our Creator are evident in almost all images in the cultural arts of the Native American artisan.” (Andy Abieta, Isleta Pueblo) Beyond the ritual purpose, even everyday objects were made well, with a kind of beauty born out of pride and imparted with a respect for all of Nature’s gifts. The word “art” does not exist in Native American tongues. To create something of beauty translates into “make it well.”
These themes are still applicable even with the significant changes of the late 1800s as people of European descent began venturing into Indian lands. The arrival of the railroad in the 1880s marked a turning point in Indian art.
