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Pueblo Indian Watercolors
Introduction
This guide will help your students learn to interpret images and understand how images represent meanings. All
examples are from the Pueblo Indian watercolor collection of
the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The direct forms and clear colors of these expressive watercolors will introduce students to the wealth of ceremonial and social customs of the Pueblo Indians of the Southwest. Students will explore the meaning of ceremonies and celebrations—dances, weddings, birthdays, etc.
Many Pueblo Indian groups today live in the same communities they have occupied for hundreds of years. Many traditions have been lost; however, many have been retained. This guide focuses on an art form that continues to be widely practiced today, and on the ceremonies and beliefs that are important elements of contemporary Pueblo society.
This guide is designed for ages ten through fourteen, but can easily be adapted for other ages.
Goals
To understand and appreciate the diversity of cultural traditions.
To develop skills in researching local, ethnic, and family traditions.
To introduce readers to the social customs, religion, and history of the Pueblos.
Pictured above: Awa Tsireh, The Giant of the Black Mesa,
Source: Andrew Connors, Pueblo Indian Watercolors: Learning by Looking, study guide (Washington, D.C.: National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 1993). Copyright Smithsonian Institution. All rights reserved.