Synopses & Reviews
For over three decades, contemporary Native American artist Hock-E-Aye-Vi Edgar Heap of Birds has pursued a disciplined practice in multiple media, having shown his paintings, drawings, prints, and text-based conceptual art throughout numerous national and international galleries and public spaces. In this first book-length study of this important artist, Bill Anthes analyzes Heap of Birdsand#39;s art and politics in relation to the international contemporary art scene, Native American history, and settler colonialism. Foregrounding how Heap of Birds roots his practice in Cheyenne spirituality and an indigenous way of seeing and being in the world, Anthes describes how Heap of Birds likens his art to weapons, delivering trenchant critiques of the loss of land, life, and autonomy endured by Native Americans. Whether appearing as interventions in public spaces or in a gallery, Heap of Birdsand#39;s carefully-honed artworksandndash;andldquo;sharp rocksandrdquo;andndash;pose questions about time, modernity, identity, power, and the meaning and value of contemporary art in a global culture.
Review
andquot;So often we fail to look carefully at or describe the works of Native American artists in depth, but tend instead to look through them to some plane of political meaning to which they presumably grant passage.and#160; Bill Anthes, by contrast, lingers on and deeply engages with Edgar Heap of Birdsand#39;s work, filling a gaping hole in contemporary art scholarship. Compelling, thought provoking, and urgently needed.andquot;
Review
andquot;The art of Edgar Heap of Birds as it come to life in these pages guides us into the dense interplay between seemingly familiar contemporary forms that in fact derive from a lifetime of contemplation on the Cheyenne and Arapaho world the artist belongs to and the art-making that grows therefrom. Bill Anthes impressively appreciates the technical virtuosity Heap of Birds revels in even as he finds a path toward understanding growing spiritual and intellectual wisdomandmdash;and perhaps more than anything the great joy, humor, and hopeandmdash;that have long fueled the art Edgar Heap of Birds makes.andquot;
Synopsis
In this first book-length study of contemporary Native American artist Edgar Heap of Birds, Bill Anthes analyzes Heap of Birdand#39;s art and politics in relation to Native American history, spirituality, and culture, the international art scene, and how his art critiques the subjugation of Native Americans.
About the Author
Bill Anthes is a Professor in the Art Field Group at Pitzer College and the author of
Native Moderns: American Indian Painting, 1940andndash;1960, also published by Duke University Press.
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Table of Contents
List of Illustrationsand#160; ix
Acknowledgmentsand#160; xiii
Introductionand#160; 1
1. Landand#160; 29
2. Wordsand#160; 67
3. Historiesand#160; 117
4. Generationsand#160; 163
Notesand#160; 181
Bibliographyand#160; 195
Indexand#160; 201