Object

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02. Tipi
  • Attributed to Standing Bear
    (Minneconjou Lakhˇóta, 1859–1934)
  • South Dakota
  • about 1880
  • Pigment on canvas
  • Native Arts acquisition funds, 1963.271

Nomadic Indigenous tribes of the Great Plains would set out multiple tipis in a circle that was metaphorically connected to the cycles of nature. The round floors of tipis symbolize the earth, and the pole in the center connects the earth to the sky. The tipis of individual families were part of a larger circle. The shape of tipis with their linking circles is also emblematic of Indigenous families' relationships to each other. This form of housing reflects a worldview in which people and nature, the past and future interact.