Indians Playing Indian: Multiculturalism and Contemporary Indigenous Art in North America

American Indian artists have responded to the pervasive misunderstanding of indigenous peoples as cultural minorities in the United States and Canada by reclaiming their historic status as sovereign nations and offering narratives of their political histories to resist multicultural incorporation. Monika Sieberts' book "Indians Playing Indian" explores this phenomenon through the medium of contemporary indigenous art, showcasing specific rhetorical strategies artists deploy to forestall multicultural misrecognition and recover political meanings of indigeneity.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 238 pages
Publication date: 30 November 2022
Publisher: The University of Alabama Press

Indigenous peoples in North America face a complex situation as they strive to reclaim their sovereign status while being persistently portrayed as cultural minorities in mainstream popular culture. This portrayal perpetuates the narrative that America is a haven for immigrants and a home to diverse multicultural democracies, such as the United States and Canada. However, this misrepresentation obscures the fact that indigenous peoples have a distinct history of colonization rather than immigration.

Monika Sieberts' book, "Indians Playing Indian," delves into this phenomenon of multicultural misrecognition and its roots in North American colonial history and the political mandates of multiculturalism. It explores the consequences of this misrecognition for contemporary indigenous cultural production and examines the responses of indigenous artists who leverage the ongoing popular interest in Native American culture and art to resist multicultural incorporation.

The book is organized into chapters that showcase different mediums of contemporary indigenous art, including museum exhibitions, cinema, digital fine art, sculpture, multimedia installations, and literary fiction. Each chapter explores specific rhetorical strategies employed by artists to prevent multicultural misrecognition and reclaim political meanings of indigeneity. The sites and artists discussed in the book include the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC, and various filmmakers, artists, and writers who contribute to the ongoing dialogue about indigenous identity and representation.

Through its comprehensive analysis, "Indians Playing Indian" provides valuable insights into the challenges faced by indigenous peoples in North America and the strategies they employ to assert their cultural sovereignty and resist marginalization. It is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of indigenous cultures and the ongoing struggle for recognition and equality.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780817360672