Customer Reviews (8)

great introduction
if you have a little musical background, this book will get you going in the right direction with your native flute.when i first started playing my cedar flute, everything sounded off-key.after reading carlos nakai's introduction and learning to play his tunes from the scores in the book, i understood the intervals of the native flute and which notes sound good in what patterns.Soon i was able not only to play nakai's beautiful songs but also to improvise on my own.being able to read music is a big help but if you have that skill, this book will give you hours of fun and learning.

Not for Beginning Players
For anyone interested in a generic understanding of the Native American FLute they may find it here.However for those who would like to learn to play and have no prior musical knowledge they will find it a discouraging study...difficult to understand without first mastering musical theory.The most valuable parts of "The Art of The Native American FLute" are the musical transcriptions of Carlos Nakai's songs written in flute tablature. They are though beneficial only for the advanced player that can read.

John Vames, Author,
"The Native American FLute: Understanding the Gift"

Carlos Nakai flute book
I thought Native American flute music was from the heart, this book teaches writen music and memorizing notes. it was disapointing to me because thats not what i want to do. But for someone you does its a very good book.

A wonderful resource for any Native Americn Flute enthusiast
"The Art of the Native American Flute" is both a comprehensive reference and a fun read.A reader with only passing familiarity with Native American flutes and music (read: has seen a photo or heard one played once) will easily be able to play the role of expert after reading this tome.

The book begins with information on the flute's historical and legendary origins.After this introduction, the reader is invited to look at a deconstructed flute and understand how all the parts fit together to form the whole.The authors discuss the flute's similarities and differences to such instruments as the pipe organ and the European recorder, and they also give a detailed analysis of how each flute's unique sound is produced.

The reader will go on to learn about care, cleaning and maintenance of the flute.Of course, the reader will also be shown how to properly play the flute (including topics such as altering tones and tablature-to-key relationships).After reading these sections, the reader can go on to practice any ofa number of included songs.

The book wraps up with extensive lists of bibliographies, discographies and references, and even an essay on the authenticity of both the style of music and the instrument itself.

This book is indispensable for anyone who has the desire to learn more about Native American flutes.Get the book, get a flute, and begin to enjoy unique beauty of this wondrous instrument.

For Beginners or Advanced players
As a beginning NAF player, I found this book fascinating.I read it before I bought my first flute, and I found the information on various types of flutes, construction, care and history to be very helpful.

I've used this book as one of my main texts for teaching myself to play this wonderful instrument.I also found the presentation of the TAB system to be useful as I have branched out into writing music of my own. ... Read more

Book Description
Indian artists from all over the nation have deep ties to New Mexico. A great many live and work in the state. Countless others have attended and/or taught at the renowned Institute of American Indian Arts (AIA) in Santa Fe, NM. All have exhibited their work at Pueblo and Indian art exhibitions, in major galleries, or at the annual Indian market hosted by the Southwestern Association of Indian Arts (SWAIA) in Santa Fe.

Almost without exception, Native artists draw upon their heritage for inspiration, and usually for form and content as well. Some create their art using traditional mediums and designs; others explore modern, sometimes unorthodox subjects, styles, and mediums. The visions expressed in their art mirror the diverse experiences of indigenous peoples living in America today.

Ndn presents examples drawn from the panorama of Native American art. Charleen Touchette’s lively essay brings a contemporary perspective to Indian art. She also selected the artists to be included in Ndn, some of whom are Allan Houser, R. C. Gorman, Arlo Namingha, Margarete Bagshaw-Tindel, Kevin Red Star, Anita Fields, and Joel McHorse. Each artist is presented individually in profiles by Suzanne Deats.

An extensive collection of the unique expressions of many well known contemporary American Indian artists. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Beautiful Book of American Indian Contemporary Art
In curating NDN ART, I selected the vibrant art of 30 Native American artists connected to New Mexico. In the introductory essay, I discuss the history of "Diversity and Change" in American Indian art and the dynamic way indigenous artists respond to change and use art to support families and communities. This oversize art book printed on quality paper in Italy by the fine art printers Sfera makes the five full pages of color art for each artist brilliant. It's the next best thing to owning the exquisite work of ndn artists as diverse as R.C.Gorman, Fritz Scholder, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Kevin Red Star, Nathan Youngblood, Cheyenne Harris, Doug Coffin, Armand Lara, Ramona Sakiestewa, Charlene Teters, Michael Naranjo, Ed Archie Noisecat, Preston Singletary, Celeste Wohl and Anita Fields. NDN ART has biographical profiles on each artist. The jewel like colors and vivid textures of Dine David Johns' paintings alone are worth the price of this well-designed book. ... Read more

Book Description
Explore Native American art.Learn how the Anasazi wove cloth from cactus fibers.This book is packed full of priceless works of art from this great civilization.Discover the beliefs, inventions, and materials that helped the art and culture of North America to develop.Full captions explain works of art in detail.A timeline summarizes the history of North America and key moments in the development of its art.Make your own Native American painting with the step-by-step instructions included in this book. ... Read more

Book Description
Kent McManis and fellow trader Robert Jeffries have provided us with the definitive introduction to one of the most popular American Indian arts -- Navajo rug weaving.It covers development from the seventeenth century through innovations of the craft today--everything from the classic Chief's Blankets, to the famous Two Grey Hills designs, to the latest in pictorial rugs. Of great help to the new collector is the list of standards in judging the quality of a rug and advice for its proper care.Fully illustrated with stunning examples of over fifty rug types. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good book for a short pictorial overview of Navajo rugs
Although this book is short on written content, it makes up for its brevity with a great selection of colourful pictures from many Navajo styles. This book focuses on a historic review of styles rather than a "how-to" for new weavers.It's short andit's inexpensive, so don't expect a thorough overview. ... Read more

Book Description
An innovative survey of Native North American art history which fully incorporates substantive new research and scholarship, and examines such issues as gender, representation, the colonial encounter, and contemporary arts. By encompassing both the sacred and secular, political and domestic, the ceremonial and commercial, it shows the importance of the visual arts in maintaining the integrity of spiritual, social , political, and economic systems within Native North American societies. This exciting new investigation explores the indigenous arts of the US and Canada from the early pre-contact period to the present day, stressing the conceptual and iconographic continuities over five centuries and across an immensely diverse range of regions. The richness of Native American art is emphasized through discussions of basketry, wood and rock carvings, dance masks, and beadwork, alongside the contemporary vitality of paintings and installations by modern artists such as Robert Davidson, Emmi Whitehorse, and Alex Janvier. 'the best guide yet to understanding the complexities of Native North American art . . .a solidly ground, sophisticated history, combining art history, anthropology, and cultural studies . . . splendidly well-written . . . useful and timely.' Gerald McMaster, Curator of Art, Canadian Museum of Civilization ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

a must-have, for all levels.
Berlo's and Phillips' erudite, critical voices are a welcome change from the often glossy, sales-driven world of Indian art writing.True to form, they have together crafted a sophisticated and highly readable survey of pre-contact, historic and contemporary Indian art, suitable for undergrads, grads, and the casual layperson.This book fills a HUGE gap, and stakes out a territory that few other scholars would dare venture; between connoisseurship, anthropology, visual culture and criticl theory.It is therefore to be expected that specialists of a particular region might take issue with some of their finer details.But specialist nit-picking misses the larger point of this book: to show how Native tribes across North America continued their cultural traditions despite colonialism and intertribal contact.It is a complex, interwoven history, but Indian art emerges, through this book, as one of the most vital, politically engaged arts in America today.This book sets the standard for Indian Art surveys.

superb one-book resource
one book can only give the reader a brief overview of the wealth of american indian art. the traditional art (i don't acknowledge a split between art and craft) was produced by all the nations, spans pre-historic and historic eras, and has been collected for centuries. the contemporary art is flourishing and much is breathtaking. that being said, this book does a wonderful job of covering such an immense subject.

the only complaint i have is the relative paucity of photos. but i would feel that way if the book were nothing but photos.

Difficult to read at first but picks up throughout.
The book is a bit slow at first and seems to linger on certain topics but the overall images are better than other books on the same topic. ... Read more

Book Description
Did you ever wonder what life might be like in a Native American village? What would you eat, and how would you pass the long winter nights? In this book, you can find out by cooking and eating traditional Catawba roasted corn, making your own Lakota beaded wristband, or creating a decorative Zuni water jar. At the same time, you'll be exploring indigenous cultures from the Inuit of the Arctic to the Tohono O'odam of the Sonoran Desert. You'll be amazed and delighted by the wealth of fascinating facts and exciting things to do and make in Traditional Native American Arts and Activities.

Jam-packed with fun and easy-to-follow projects, recipes, and games, this captivating book explores what makes the heritage of Native Americans so unique and wonderful. Where else can you learn how to sew a Tlingit button blanket, stir up a yummy Yupik wild raspberry dessert, or make a coaster using a traditional Seminole patchwork design? Encounter the stories and customs of the early North Americans, and of their descendants today, and have a great time doing it! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Traditional Native American Crafts and Activities
This is an excellent book that provides kids with accurate, historical information about Native Americans.
The activities represent authentic Native American arts and also includes recipes and games.
This book would be anasset to any home or classroom.The author traveled to reservations and native communities to gather her information. ... Read more

Book Description
Native American arts and crafts are enjoying renewed appreciation and increasing recognition as a vital part of America's cultural heritage. In Native American Art, the richness and diversity of this centuries-old tradition is celebrated through nearly 300 color plates and incisive commentary. Tracing the development of American Indian art from 20,000 years ago to the present day, it features exquisite works from every part of North America. ... Read more

Book Description
Contemporary Native American and First Nation art has won increasing international recognition in recent years as galleries and museums have begun to make room for Native artists. Provocative and illuminating, Native American Art in the Twentieth Century features the writings of practicing artists, critics, curators and scholars that engage a wide range of critical issues in Native art from the 1890s to the present.

Demonstrating its vitality and diversity, the contributors examine pottery, painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography and performance art by some of the most celebrated Native American and Canadian artists of our time. From the Pueblo pottery revival to the invention and marketing of modern Inuit art, contributors offer new interpretive strategies based on Native culture and knowledge, stressing the significance of tradition, mythology and ceremony in the production of Native art. Tracing the continued resistance of Native artists to dominant orthodoxies of the art market and art history, Native American Art in the Twentieth Century is a testament to Native art's place in modern art history.

Contributors: Sara Bates, Bruce Bernstein, Colleen Cutschall, Margaret Dubin, Joe Feddersen, Lucy R. Lippard, Gerald R. McMaster, David W. Penny, Ruth B. Phillips, Kristin K. Potter, Lisa A. Roberts, W. Jackson Rushing III, Charlotte Townsend-Gault, Joseph Traugott, Kay Walking Stick and Elizabeth Woody. ... Read more

Book Description
The University of New Mexico's Tamarind Institute is a world-renowned center for fine art lithography dedicated to training master printers and providing a professional studio for artists. In Migrations, Tamarind director Marjorie Devon has compiled the work of six Native American artists, each of whom collaborated with professional printers at Tamarind and at Crow's Shadow Institute of the Arts in Pendleton, Oregon, to create prints. These artists were selected because they engage in contemporary art rather than what is traditionally considered "Native American art." Artists Steven Deo (Creek/Euchee), Tom Jones (Ho Chunk), Larry McNeil (Tlingit/Nisgaa), Ryan Lee Smith (Cherokee), Star Wallowing Bull (Chippewa/Arapaho), and Marie Watt (Seneca) represent a wide spectrum of Native American culturesand experiences.

In addition to the art, essays by Jo Ortel, Lucy Lippard, Kathleen Howe, and Gerald McMaster contribute expert analyses of Native American art. Ortel, an associate professor of art history at Beloit College, defines "Migrations" as it applies to this project. Lippard is an art critic and author whose essay discusses the cultural baggage forced upon the American Indian. As director of the Pomona College Museum of Art and professor of art history, Howe offers an overview of Tamarind Institute’s projects with indigenous peoples. A Plains Cree artist, McMaster’s essay details the history of Crow's Shadow Institute on Oregon's Umatilla Reservation. A traveling exhibition of the art contained here, also entitled "Migrations," will begin in 2007, venues to be announced.

Migrations features a surprising selection of the work of six contemporary artists and the master printers at Tamarind Institute along with important essays by noted critics on the new directions of Native art. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An essential exhibit and stands well alone as an important survey.
MIGRATIONS: NEW DIRECTIONS IN NATIVE AMERICAN ART provides a selection of pieces by six new emerging Native American artists featured in a 2002 Migrations exhibition, with essays by three scholars exploring the evolution and history of the field as a whole. Many titles focus on prior representations of Native lives: too few on the new Native artists and their explorations, so Migrations is both an essential exhibit and stands well alone as an important survey.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch ... Read more

Book Description
One of the world's greatest treasure troves of Native American artifacts-nearly 30,000 objects-lies in the vaults of the Ethnological Museum Berlin (until recently the Museum fŸr Všlkerkunde). The pieces were collected over a 100-year period, beginning in the first half of the 19th century, by a dedicated group of explorers, wealthy adventurers, and traders, among them James Cook, Duke Paul of Wurttenberg, and Franz Boas. It is a stunning and important collection, in part because the pieces were collected so early in the encounter between Europeans and Native Americans. However,space limitations have kept the collection in storage and away from scholars and the general public since the end of the Second World War.

This book brings the collection's treasures to an international audience. Organized by sections on the major cultural areas-including the Eastern Woodlands, Prairie and Plains, Southwest, California, Plateau and Great Basin, Northwest Coast, Subarctic, and Arctic-the incisive text is supplemented by color photographs of the objects and historical photographs. The book concludes with a chapter on contemporary Native American art and its role in bridging the distance between Native cultures and the dominant society. ... Read more

Book Description
Discover and explore Native American cultures with this collection of facts, stories, folk tales, recipes, games, and art activities. ... Read more