“Indian, not Indian,” an exhibit of Fritz Scholder’s work at the Smithsonian Institute’s National American Indian Museum, challenges the very idea of who the American Indian was while demonstrating how Scholder revolutionized the depiction of the American Indian, replacing the classical romantic depictions with a modern, pop-art realism.
The American Indian has long been a controversial, if not altogether taboo, topic in contemporary American society. The stain of such atrocities as the Trail of Tears and Little Big Horn continues to permeate the lives of many American Indians today. Scholder refuses to ignore this troubled history, and thus creates a disturbing collection depicting the “real” American Indian.
The American Indian Museum’s architecture is a work of art in itself. The building is imbued with the feel of a Southwestern canyon and includes an overhang for a plaza. The exhibits within the museum host interactive displays with video and numerous artifacts, including a fascinating case of animal sculpture and another made of intricate bead works.
Opening Scholder’s exhibit, Indian with Tear establishes the artist’s theme of intense color. Dominated by black and grey, the painting’s only color exists in the purple, green, and orange used to highlight the Indian’s facial features. Scholder consistently employs bright hues (occasionally contrasting them with black and white), making fine choices of complementary colors and unexpected combinations.
Many of the works in the exhibition play with the abstract and paradoxical, (Scholder professed that the latter was his favorite word.) Dying Indian uses only half the canvas (with the body falling into the black nothingness), and could be called crudely painted. Yet, it is the technique of strong brush strokes and streaks of blood that bring emotion and stimulation into the painting. Scholder perfectly exemplifies how an artist does not need realism to depict reality.
Indian with a Beer Can, though simple in title, is one of the most moving works in the exhibit. The theme of alcoholism is a topic often confined to the realm of family secrets, but Scholder depicts the unvarnished truth, choosing not to shy away from socially-charged subject matter.
Scholder also incorporates pop art elements, basing some of his paintings off of photographs. He focuses most of his Indian work on portraits, choosing to depict one situation in each work. While this provides relatively simple paintings, each one is overflowing with meaning and emotion. After the Massacre features a pit of mangled bodies in the foreground of a largely white canvas. Anything but empty, the space emphasizes the unrecognizable body parts and the inhumanity of the whole situation, exemplifying Scholder’s fascination with death.
Using his strong technique, vivid colors and challenging subjects, Scholder stirs up emotions and notions in his artwork. Each piece summons strong emotion and presents an entirely different situation. Thus, the exhibit provides a thoroughly challenging and thought-provoking experience that is enlightening and anything but comfortable.
Open at the National Museum of the American Indian through August 16, 2009. Admission: Free. Hours: 10-5:30. Use L’Enfant Plaza metro station.
