Iroquois Indian Games and Dances: Tempera Paintings by Tom Dorsey, July 26-August 22, 1943
Scope and Contents
An exhibition of 17 panel paintings in tempera depicting traditional games and dances of the Iroquois by Native American artist, Sgt. Tom Dorsey. Two maps showing the current territories of the Iroquois in present-day New York State accompanied the artworks. Dorsey was commissioned in 1942 by the Albany Institute of History and Art to spend six weeks on the Onondaga Reservation to create these intimate depictions of modern Iroquois. The exhibition was circulated by the American Federation of the Arts.
The exhibition records span three folders and include an exhibition description and object list, planning correspondence, and registration receipts.
Dates
- Creation: July 26-August 22, 1943
Creator
- Dorsey, Tom, 1920-1993 (Artist, Person)
- American Federation of Arts (founded 1909) (Arranger, Organization)
- Albany Institute of History and Art (founded 1791) (Sponsor, Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
At this time, the exhibition records are unavailable to the public and will only be made available to FAMSF staff upon request.
Biographical / Historical
Born as Thomas Dorsey, Tom Two Arrows (1920-1993) was an Onondagan-adopted Lenni-Lenape (Delaware) artist based in the Albany area. At age 21, he was commissioned to create a series of paintings depicting Iroquois games and dances. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He first taught at Jacob’s Pillow, a dance center, school and performance space in Massachusetts, in 1949 when a film of him dancing a traditional Iroquois dance was made. Rather than showing Iroquois dances as relics of the past, Dorsey argued that “the Iroquois, or as they call themselves, the Haudenosaunee (People of the Longhouse), are a powerful and sovereign political force in America today.”
Source: https://danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org/tom-two-arrows/iroquois-indian-dance/#:~:text=Born%20as%20Thomas%20Dorsey%2C%20Tom,depicting%20Iroquois%20games%20and%20dances.
Extent
0.1 Linear Feet (The exhibition records span three folders.)
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Abstract
An exhibition of 17 panel paintings in tempera depicting traditional games and dances of the Iroquois by Native American artist, Sgt. Tom Dorsey. Dorsey was commissioned in 1942 by the Albany Institute of History and Art to create these intimate depictions of modern Iroquois. The exhibition was circulated by the American Federation of the Arts. The exhibition records span three folders.
Arrangement
The materials are separated by content and type and organized chronologically.
Cultural context
Geographic
Topical
Repository Details
Part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco Archives Repository
50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr
San Francisco California 94118 USA