Quillwork: A Vanishing Native American Art
Specializing in the nearly forgotten art of quillwork, Native American artist Tim Lammers is preserving his Lakota heritage with each and every piece he creates.Using the traditional techniques of his…
Tribe Scribe
Native American Music: Round Dance
Characterized by energized English lyrics and the unmistakable cadence of the drum, the rhythms of Round Dance fill the room with laughter, friendship, togetherness, and goodwill.The spontaneous, infe…
Native American Herb: Red Willow Bark
Known as "Cansasa" to the Lakota, Red Willow Bark is a spiritually important herb within the Native American culture. It is often used during times of ceremony to show respect or give spiritual protec…
Native American Art: Winter Counts
A Winter Count is the Native American tradition of visually archiving their tribal history and culture...a few have even documented significant natural occurrences.The Lakota are revered for their Win…
Native American History: Ghost Dance
A mysterious and often misunderstood Native American ritual, the Ghost Dance once inspired fear among white Americans during the late 19th century.…but, this ominous spirit dance actually began as a n…
Lakota History: Wounded Knee Massacre, Dec 29 1890
The massacre at Wounded Knee took place on December 29, 1890 on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in SD, near Wounded Knee Creek.Causes: Events leading up to the massacre
The US Government began to f…
Lakota History: Fetterman Massacre, Dec 21, 1866
During the Western Indian Wars, Red Cloud orchestrated a series of conflicts throughout the Wyoming and Montana territories in defense of Lakota territory or the Powder River Country in north central…
Lakota Artist Evans Flammond Sr: Ledger Art
The work of Lakota Indian artist Evans Flammond Sr. is a result of his careful exploration into the past, mixed with his powerful need to create. Driven by his vow to keep the Native culture aliv…
Lakota Nation Invitational: Art Show
Celebrating their 34th year in the Rapid City area, the Lakota Nation Invitational (LNI) features an exciting mix of high school sports and a cultural display of traditional and contemporary Native Am…
Native American Jewelry Artist Paul Szabo: Keeping it Simple
Renowned for his ability to fuse modern metalsmithing techniques with traditional Plains Indian imagery, the work of Paul Szabo radiates with a simple elegance in both design and purpose.Imagery: Nort…
So What Did the Indians Use Before Beads?
Our last blog post was “When Did The Indians Start Making Glass Beads?” So to summarize, they did not make glass beads. Beads were introduced into their work when the explorers came and trading began.…
When did the Indians start making glass beads?
This is a really good question, and I have had the opportunity to answer it many times over the years.The Plains Indians never made glass beads. In fact, glass beads were first brought here by explore…