Nez Perce bead work is world-renowned for its fine craftsmanship but the history of their intricate designs stretches to a time before beads were introduced.
"Beauty in Beads: Nez Perce Beading 1840-2009," an exhibit opening tonight at the Lewis-Clark State College Center for Arts & History, explores old and new work by tribal members. The project is a collaboration between the college, the Nez Perce Arts Council and the Nez Perce Historical Park Museum at Spalding.
The display will be one of the first Nez Perce all-beading exhibits in Lewiston, says Kevin Peters, a ranger at the park and one of the artists represented.
Peters is one of many tribal members who beads. Beading, he says, "represents the upkeep of our culture in the fact that all your objects need to be good to look at."
Traditionally Nez Perce have used geometric and floral patterns. These can be found in centuries old woven corn-husk bags and hats. When glass beads were introduced in the late 1700s the Nez Perce had a new medium to execute their designs, Peters says.
The exhibition includes a retrospective of Nez Perce beadwork, representing 160 years, with objects on loan from the museum; new works by local artists; and selections from the personal and private collections of Marcus Amerman, an internationally recognized bead artist. An opening reception with the artists is from 4 to 7 tonight in Gallery II of the center. A four-member panel will discuss their work from 6 to 7. Panelists are Bernice Moffett, Bev Allen, Gary Greene and Peters.
"The Nez Perce have a reputation as a tribal group for being the best at (beading)," says Bob Chenoweth, curator at Spalding. "It's generally understood in the museum world and among people who collect to be the highest quality craftsmanship among the plateau people."
Objects from the museum's collection to be exhibited include beaded bags, vests, shoes and gauntlets - gloves with long cuffs that were made as a trade item around the turn of the 20th century, says Chenoweth.
For the new works portion of the exhibit tribal members created beadworks using the pictorial beading technique, a more recent design. Finished works, which include faces, animals and landscape scenes, resemble a 3-D picture. Tribal members were introduced to the pictorial technique last fall by Bev Allen of the Confederated Tribes of the Yakama Nation. Local artists in the show include, Moffett, Florene Davis, Greene, Bev Allen, Gayle Bear, Sylvia Mitchell, Marcie Baily, Brooklyn Baptiste, Jean Anne Moose, Elsie Cree and Bessie Blackeagle.
Allen is a former student of Amerman, who will give a presentation on his work at 5 p.m. March 11 at the gallery.
Amerman is an enrolled Choctaw Indian from Oklahoma who resides in Santa Fe, N.M. He received a degree from Whitman College in Walla Walla and has studied at the College of Santa Fe, the Institute of the American Indian Arts, and the Anthropology Film Center, all of Santa Fe. A master bead worker and performance artist, Amerman's work has been featured in Indian Humor, a traveling exhibition organized by the American Indian Contemporary Arts in San Francisco. It is in the collections of the National Museum of the American Indian and the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.; the American Museum of Natural History and the Museum of Arts and Design, New York City; and the Portland Art Museum in Oregon.
Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
Bauer may be contacted at jkbauer@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2263.
If you go
What: Beauty in Beads: Nez Perce Beading 1840-2009
When: Tonight through April 8
Where: Lewis-Clark State College Center for Arts & History, 415 Main St., Lewiston
Admission: Free
Of note:
l The exhibit opens with a reception from 4 to 7 tonight in Gallery II. A panel discussion with Bernice Moffett, Bev Allen, Gary Greene and Kevin Peters is from 6 to 7.
l Marcus Amerman, master craftsman and international artist, will give a presentation on his work at 5 p.m. March 11.
