Performed acculturation at Fort Marion : a case study of Zotom's drawings

This study examines how Native American warriors imprisoned at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida, between 1875 and 1878, used their drawings to perform acculturation. I use the Kiowa warrior Paul Caryl Zotom’s drawings as a case study to demonstrate how the prisoners became methodical and formulaic in their subject matter and artistic style. Euro-American visitors to Fort Marion appreciated particular drawings over others, thereby directing subject matter. Prisoners adopted European artistic standards, thus, connected with their White audience further. Zotom’s embrace of both the subject matter and artistic style that the Euro-American audience appreciated most indicates his desire to demonstrate how successful he and his fellow prisoners were at adopting the white man’s road. I argue that much of the apparent change displayed visually in Zotom’s drawings was performed rather than true acculturation.

Mind majick : a study of the paintings by Harry Smith

Harry Smith was an American artist who worked primarily in the 1940s through the 1980s. Although largely an obscure figure in American culture, Smith is most commonly recognized for his achievements in anthropology and ethnology, experimental cinema, and musicology. This master’s research paper is the first in-depth scholarly study of Harry Smiths’ achievements as a painter. Only a few of Smith’s paintings exist today, which explains why they have received so little attention. However, there is enough work and information available to weave together a chronological study of Smith’s occupation as a painter. In this paper, one will see how Smith’s work and interests in various fields of study influenced his painterly aesthetic, and how he was able to tie together all of his disparate diversions into cohesive and unified visions upon a twodimensional surface.