Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

CAS Anthropology Collections Database


Catalog Number CAS 0370-1128   CAS 0370-1128; Painting
Category Visual Arts
Object Name Painting
Culture Omaha or Sioux
Global Region North America
Country USA
State/Prov./Dist. New Mexico
County Santa Fe
Other Geographic Data City: Santa Fe
Maker's Name Calvin Tyndall (Umpah [Elk]) (died ca. 1970s)
Date of Manufacture ca. 1935-1940
Collection Name Elkus Collection (Native American)
Materials Opaque watercolor on paper
Description Painting on white watercolor paper entitled "Gourd Song" showing man with his back to the viewer and seated between two upright curved poles with feathered streamers; Man wears plains-style cloth apron with eagle motif, and beaded or quilled wristlets and armlets, and he holds gourd rattle in each hand; He is flanked by 2 men similarly dressed, shown in full frontal pose; 5 additional men, each in red and blue blanket and seated with heads bowed nearly to the ground form a semicircle around central figure; Arched band overhead with feathered streamers frames the scene; Signature "Um Pah" is printed in black ink just below figures; "The Studio U.S. Indian School Santa Fe, New Mexico" is stamped on reverse. This painting was selected by Ruth and Charles deYoung Elkus in 1958 as their annual holiday card, printed by the Grabhorn Press in San Francisco.
Dimensions (cm) Width = 38.4, Length = 56.9