Native American Art Research Paper

Definition of Art Every culture in the world uses art. Some use it as decoration or tools while others use it to tell stories and record their history. In America, the Natives have been using art since they first came into existence, and their culture is reflected in every medium they used whether it be color or shape. As time changed and went on, the state of Oklahoma received most of the Natives, the events greatly affected the culture which affected the art. Native Americans in Oklahoma used art to maintain their culture and history through different mediums like clay, weaving, beads, etc. For example, pottery ,which was used in ways such as dishes, storage, and a means to make money later on, was used for a tool long before it had been
As Mr. Swan state's “Bead making has a long duration in Native North America, with seeds, stone, clay, wood, bone, horn, pearl, shell, antler, and other natural materials used to fashion beads for necklaces and other decorative purposes( Swan, 2009).” Already noticeable for the fact that a key material for bead making is clay and as shown in the above paragraph, Oklahoma has a large amount of clay available for use. The Native Americans’ beliefs also affected their beads, as they believe in using the animals they kill to the fullest extent. The Native Americans in Oklahoma hunted buffalo, which they then used the bones to make the beads which eventually used for trade with other tribes and Europeans. Later “The use of the “seed bead” by Native Americans beginning in the 1800s was the result of hundreds of years of European glass technology intersecting with the westward expansion of the United States across the continent( Crazy Crow, 1970).” Beadwork didn’t change from currency to artwork until European incursion and the introduction of glass beads much smaller than the ones used for monetary purposes. After seed beads arrived, the Plains Natives replaced most of their forms of art with seedbeads. “The advent of small-sized "seed beads" quickly diminished the importance of painting, porcupine quill embroidery, and other decorative techniques on clothing, horse gear, utensils, and ceremonial items…. These diverse historic traditions led to the development of an "Oklahoma style" of beadwork that both preserves distinct tribal elements and benefits from their admixture( Swan, 2009).” The Native Americans of Oklahoma took the beads and adapted them into forms to decorate for tribal identity, ceremonious values, and everyday beautification around the home/ camp. By