Customer Reviews

The Complete Guide to Traditional Native American Beadwork: A Definitive Study of Authentic Tools, Materials, Techniques, and Styles

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Good things first: the brain-tanning section is nice. The color pictures are also nice (but there are worlds between those photographs and the rest of the book). And the author's style of writing is nice, too. But here, alas, the niceties end!

There's another book available here at Amazon.com: "Native American Beadwork: Traditional Beading Techniques for the Modern-Day Beadworker" by Georg J. Barth. While that one does not claim to be complete (which no book can be) it actually comes pretty near to that goal. For example the Crow stitch, which has been a common technique among the Plains and Plateau beaders, is covered by Barth in a whole chapter while Monture just "devotes" one single paragraph -- and the worst thing is: Mr Monture has not understood this beading technique at all and presents a completely wrong instruction.

The overlay stitch -- a beading technique that was used on almost all of North America and that employed two needles -- is also completely misunderstood. Mr Monture presents a technique that almost never was used by the Native women who did (and do) most of Native style beadwork but unfortunately is very popular among non-Native beaders. The "running stitch" that Monture recommends results invariably in a humpy surface and does Native bead artistry no justice.

"Native American Beadwork" by Barth covers the various weaving techniques on more than thirty pages with as much diagrams, while Monture does away with a single page. The same applies to the various techniques of Peyote or Gourd stitch. While Monture is satisfied with one technique that is mostly used by Non-Native beadworkers and that is dealt with on two meagre pages, Barth's book is the first one that offers a comphrehensive description of the Peyote Stitch on more than thirty pages, including as many diagrams and illustrations.

As to Monture's computer generated diagrams: these are some of the poorest illustrations that I have found in a book on this subject or any other.

That the author is a Native American is no guarantee that he automatically knows everything about Native American beadwork. Even his position as a professor at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe should not make you think that this makes him automatically an expert on beadwork.

This definitely is NOT a complete guide, and it definitely is NOT the book you can learn from how to bead Native American style!

How interesting that the beadwork book chosen as more "authentic" by some here was written by a European from Germany! Mr. Monture is Six Nations (Mohawk, I believe) from New York State, & has taught Native Arts at the American Indian Arts Institute (a college *for* Native artists) for some years.

Again, its more about where you're from. Some could say it is 'romantized', as it doesn't go into how much work it actually is to produce hides, that its smelly, you need a lot of guidance & practice, etc.

Different tribes use different techniques, & this book is definitely written from a more northeastern tradition, perhaps difficult to appreciate as it is less known outside these communities. (Plains beadwork is usually what the mainstream usually recognizes as 'authentic'.)

That said, one probably needs a little background to get the most from this book. I do wish there was more discussion on color use and Great Lakes pattern development, but these are also skills which are best honed by doing. I enjoyed this book, which does pack a lot of information into relatively little space. The construction techniques are excellent!

The author, Joel Monture, is a professor of traditional arts at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe. His thorough textbook documents not only native American beadwork techniques, but the tedious methods of leather preparation that are necessary prior to beading.

A San Antonio local artisan, Ken Yanez, is familiar with this process of scraping, lacing and brain-tanning leather. Ken befriended a native American while in the Marines and accompanied him home to the reservation during military leaves. There, an elder showed Ken some magnificent, old beadwork. Ken was surprised to learn that the tribal youth showed little interest, including his friend. Although Ken doesn't have sufficient native American ancestry to qualify for tribal membership, he made a personal commitment to learn these techniques. Ken's projects are authentically produced but cannot be labeled as "Indian made."

Why don't tribal youth show more interest in native American craft? Preparation for beading in the native American tradition, such as brain-tanning of hides, is labor intensive, although the results are buttery-soft, making the leather pliable for decorative beading and quilling. Because of the work and time involved, few of today's tribal youth want to perpetuate the craft. "Time" has become "money," so if there is interest in doing crafts in the classical tradition, it's to make some money. Ken will attest to the amount of time it took to make a cradle board for his son. He certainly couldn't sell it for a price to equal the months that he put into the project.

To offset the lack of interest in fine craft, author Joel Monture has captured the steps needed to recreate the obvious beauty inherent in native American beadwork. The book features 43 color plates of beadwork, including the styles of many North American tribes.

In one respect, Joel is preserving an anthropological record of the personal ornamentation used by various tribes by showing us the differences and similarities of style. To lose these tribal identifiers results in cultural homogeny and a disconnect with our human history. Joel's sense of history has led him to capture these artistic techniques before they are lost.

Monture taught me his rendition of brain-tanning and 'traditional' beadwork. I have learned authentic Traditional beading not only from Barth's book, "Native American Beadwork: Traditional Beading Techniques for the Modern-Day Beadworker", but from working with traditional Native beadworkers and hide tanners. Monture's book is truely a romanticized version of yesteryear surely to captivate the heart of a non-traditional "indigenous wannabe". An educated guess; One cannot write about things that one does not know. Nice try anyway.

With this book, the reader and bead will become one. It is obvious that the author, Joel Monture, has a deep love and connection with the Native American craft of beadwork. It is highly detailed, with illustrations and beautiful, colored photo examples. The book elaborates, not only on beads, but also on stitching methods, hide tanning and antler uses. Along the way you will learn the history behind the authentic Native art. It is sure to be pleasing and leave you desiring to know more!

This is a great book for those looking for authentic beadwork styles. The author covers a broad range of styles. He also discusses different backgrounds and even provides instruction for hide tanning.

I just got this book along with two others the other night. Haven't had the chance yet to read it completely yet. Having scanned it a bit though, I would say the section with color photos is good, particularly if you're a crafter looking for patterns. The text I've read up to this point is good and worth reading. I've had a little bit of a hard time with some of the diagarms though, particularly some of the ones dealing with hides and hide tanning. Not that I'm looking to tan hides right now, but I thought it would still be interesting to understand the process. Several of the stitch diagrams are easier to follow though. There are black and white photos as well in this book. Most came out fine, but I think a there are a few that must have had poor lighting.

i love indian art, traditional and contemporary. i have a small collection of northwest and inuit art. i have studied the histories of several nations. but i am not an indian. no matter how much study i may devote to indian arts and history, i will never be an indian, i will never have the intimate knowledge that comes from growing up in a culture. i would never presume to tell any member of any indian nation that his or her work was not 'traditional.'

and what, exactly, is tradtional? louise keyser, a washoe who died in 1925, created a new form of basket in the 1890s that was based on her tradition and her knowledge of other nations' traditions. this is what artists do--take what they know, build on it, and create new forms. after all, indians happily absorbed european beads into their 'traditions.'

i design my own knits, embroideries and beadwork. this book offers stunning photos and a good section on traditional color use which together give me a good starting point for my own creations and which is why i rate this book at five stars.

note on nomenclature: the indians i have known were not concerned about indian/native american. i object to native american since the indians migrated (IMmigrated) here just as everyone else has, albeit a few thousand years earlier. if i have offended any indian/native american by this use, i apologize. if a european doesn't like it, well....