Monday, January 13, 1997
The Southwest Museum in Pasadena brings the culture of America’s
first denizens to life through architecture, art and special
programs.By Carrie Rosten
Daily Bruin Contributor
L.A.’s Southwest Museum chronicles the richness and diversity of
Native American culture while offering a comprehensive survey of
American history as well. Home to one of the finest collections of
Native American art in the country, the museum showcases artwork
from tribes ranging from the Alaskan panhandle to South
America.
Founded in 1907 by Charles Fletcher Lummis along with members of
the Southwest Society, it is the oldest museum in Los Angeles.
Located in Highland Park and perched atop Mt. Washington, the
museum itself is a historical architectural landmark. Modeled after
the Spanish-California mission style, the striking edifice affords
panoramic views of downtown.
Visitors enter the museum through a long, white-washed adobe
tunnel, and then take an elevator up to the main floor. Two massive
levels feature art from native tribes of the Southwest, California,
the Great Plains, and the Northwest Coast.
The permanent exhibit highlights include extensive collections
of beadwork, quilling and basketry. A large portion of the exhibit
hall is also devoted to other traditional Native American
shamanistic and ceremonial objects. A historic collection of South
American pre-Columbian pottery and textiles is currently on display
as well.
The art of quilling is an intricate and labored form commonly
used by the Sioux, Cheyenne, Crow, and Lakota. By weaving together
porcupine and bird quills, ceremonial garments and decorative
household items are meticulously embroidered and adorned. Ornate
head dresses and feathered bonnets line exhibit walls.
Beading, another dominant Native American art form, is also
prominently featured alongside quilled items. After 1850, the use
of tiny "seed beads" became popularized among many tribes once
Europeans introduced the multi-colored glass beads through trade.
Methodical stitching and care create sweeping geometric patterns
and abstract designs. Several Sioux and Blackfeet beaded moccasins,
sashes, and shoulder bags are on permanent display.
An impressive 18-foot replica of a Cheyenne tee-pee sits in the
center of the main hall. The art of skinning and dressing buffalo
hides for shelter, clothing and tools is also explained in detail.
Massive totem poles and an array of ceremonial, shamanistic and
communal masks are featured in the Northwest Coastal section.
"People of California" displays dozens of handwoven baskets,
particularly those from the Pomo tribe. Traditional collecting,
lidded and feathered baskets are displayed alongside rabbit skin
blankets. Navajo and Apache horse saddles and bridles comprise a
large section devoted to the horse, a sacred creature, or "gift
from the Gods" in Native American mythology.
Holy medicinal objects as well as Navajo poetry are included
here also. Folk art by two contemporary Navajo artists, Roger
Armstrong and Leland Holiday, is currently exhibited
downstairs.
The Southwest Museum not only salutes Native American heritage
in art, but also maintains an active network of cultural
preservation efforts. In addition to its excellent permanent
collections, the site is also home to the Braun Research Library,
an epicenter for Native American archeological and anthropological
research.
Adjacent to the museum is Casa de Adobe, a building modeled
after a pre-1850s Spanish-California ranch and entirely built by
local adobe craftsmen. A unique museum store showcases Native
American pottery, decorative arts and jewelry.
Throughout the year, weekend seminars and classes are offered in
an effort to explore and safeguard Native American history and
culture. Programs include storytelling and dance, arts and crafts,
and contemporary film.
The Southwest Museum is located one-half mile west of the
Pasadena 110 Freeway at 234 Museum Dr. in Los Angeles. Student
admission is $3. Call (213) 221-2164 for more info.
In one of many
exhibitions in the Southwest Museum in Pasadena, a
historically
accurate miniature display depicts a Tlingit household about to
receive guests.
Left: A Tlingit tribe Raven Rattle.JUSTIN WARREN/Daily
BruinJUSTIN WARREN/Daily Bruin
Ellen Lyons, visiting from Miami, Florida, admires one of the
many displays at Pasadena’s Southwest Museum.