Keepers of Indigenous Tradition
In the American Southwest, Native Americans have retained their ancestral homelands and sovereign governance through the ages—enabling their traditional art forms to both survive and evolve.
Dear Friends,
This week, on the brink of the equinox, we’re delighted to present the first story of our new Fall issue, which focuses on Native American Craft in the American Southwest. This collection, which has been in the works for more than a year, is not meant to represent every Indigenous group or art form in the region; its goal is to showcase the rich variety of Native arts in the Southwest through a few, select stories.
These stories would not exist without the expertise, talent, and hard work of our local contributors and subject experts, many of whom have spent decades developing the relationships with Southwest tribes that made these stories possible. We offer each of them our deepest thanks. We also want to acknowledge the Center for Craft, which contributed some research funding to this project; and, last but not least, our stalwart and gracious guest editor for this issue, RoseMary Diaz, who is a member of a New Mexico Pueblo Indian tribe herself (Santa Clara Pueblo).
So, without further ado, we present our first offering of the new season, “Keepers of Indigenous Tradition,” written by RoseMary Diaz and Daniel Gibson. I hope you’ll enjoy this brief, illustrated history of how and why the American Southwest came to be the global epicenter for Native arts—and what that means for the Indigenous Peoples who have inhabited its lands for millennia.
We’ll continue to add to our Fall issue on “Native American Craft: The Southwest" through mid-November. Each Friday, we’ll release a feature story, short article, mini-documentary, photo essay, or podcast. While most offerings will be related to some aspect of our theme, we also try to offer a few stories on other topics each quarter so that there's something for everyone. So please, stay tuned.
In the meantime, I hope you'll always find something intriguing to read, watch, or listen to within our pages—currently free of charge, and free of ads. We welcome your thoughts via email, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Thank you for reading and sharing our stories, for donating to our cause when you can, and for being such a loyal part of the Craftsmanship community.
Sincerely,
Todd Oppenheimer
Editor & Publisher, Craftsmanship Quarterly
Native American Craft: The Southwest
In our first issue on Native American craft, which we hope will be joined by others in the coming years, we look at the unusually rich and varied craft traditions of some of the Southwest’s Indian tribes. These communities rarely let outsiders see much of their cultural practices, but thanks to the tireless work of a few New Mexico writers and others, who have spent years developing relationships with members of the region’s tribes, we can offer you a glimpse into the work of some remarkable Indigenous artists and artisans.