An exhibit exploring the way dress and life changed for many Southern Plains Native Americans during the late-1800s is on display at the Wyoming State Museum in Cheyenne through October 5.
"In Citizen’s Garb: Southern Plains Native Americans, 1889-1891," examines the ways dress -– and life -– changed for the Kiowa, Comanche and affiliated tribes during the 1880s and 1890s.
Indian Reservations in Oklahoma and Indian Territories opened during this era, coinciding with large-scale efforts by the United States government to force western Native American tribes to adapt to Euro-American ways.
These efforts were meant to "civilize" the native peoples. "In Citizen’s Garb" is toured by ExhibitsUSA, which is the national touring division of Mid-America Arts Alliance, a non-profit regional arts organization based in Kansas City, Mo.
Williams J. Lenny and William L. Sawyers were among the many white entrepreneurs quick to capitalize on the romantic lure of the tribes. They set up shop in Purcell, Okla., one of the many towns that sprang up on former Indian lands, to make photographs of formerly "wild Indians" for eastern consumption, where there was a great appetite for image of the West. The 53 photographs that comprise this exhibition are modern re-strikes made from Lenny and Sawyer’s original glass negatives.
Some of the photographs show obvious – yet powerful - details of the acculturation process. Images of Native Americans in both citizen and native dress reflect the transition that occurred between the tribes’ past and their radically different future.
"In Citizen’s Garb" is curated by John Hernandez, director of the Museum of the Great Plains in Lawton, Okla. The purpose of this and other ExhibitsUSA shows is to create access to an array of arts and humanities exhibitions, nurture the development and understanding of diverse art forms and cultures, and encourage the expanding depth and breadth of cultural life in local communities.
ExhibitsUSA is a national division of Mid-America Arts Alliance, a private nonprofit organization founded in 1972.
