Renowned Lakota artist Patrick Joel Pulliam has helped to establish the Pine Ridge Center for Artists and Crafters.
Lakota Artist Looks To Give Hand-up
By Brandon Ecoffey
Lakota Country Times Editor
www.lakotacountrytimes.com PINE RIDGE -- For many artists on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation it is difficult to acquire the skills necessary to become self-sustaining. One established artist noticed the need that many Lakota artists have displayed and decided to answer the call. Patrick Joel Pulliam has been doing art on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and beyond for the last 25 years. His work has graced the cover of the Oglala Lakota Nation Fair promotional guide for 24 years and he has taken home the Black Hills pow-wow People's choice award 3 out of the 7 times he has entered. Next month, Pulliam will have his work displayed inside the National Museum of the Native American in New York City but his ultimate passion goes far beyond the notoriety that his work brings him. "My goal has always been to preserve historic knowledge through art," said Pulliam. "I have studied the work of Bad Heart Bull, Red Horse, and Black Hawk -- who were the original ledger artists -- and whose work has preserved knowledge for future generations." For Pulliam the role of art in modern day Lakota culture is in partly in preserving the ancient knowledge that has been passed down to Lakota people for thousands of years. "Art and art culture is my passion. I am doing my small part to preserve the cultural considering how fast it's dying. " He says that along with traditional Lakota ceremonies, art plays a vital role in guaranteeing the the survival of Lakota culture.
Wood carvings by Leonard Yellow Horse (Oglala Sioux) are among the works featured at the Pine Ridge Center for Artists and Crafters in South Dakota. Photo from Pine Ridge Center for Artists and Crafters / Facebook
So about a year and a half ago, Pulliam reached out to social media with an idea to create a program to help struggling artists earn success in their industry. He would receive a reply from Natalie Hilleman who would eventually help him establish a non-profit designed to provide technical assistance to Lakota artists. Today the Pine Ridge Center for Artists and Crafters helps approximately 25 local artists with everything from supplies to information on how to market their pieces. The services provided by the center are a continuation of work that Pulliam had been carrying out on his own prior to the establishment of the center. "I have been doing artwork for the last twenty five years. I hustled my ass off and even lost a business. I wondered why the tribe never had a program to help artists. Our work is world renown and viewed by many as treasures," said Pulliam Part of the centers efforts are focused on helping artists receive adequate compensation for their work. "I remember walking the streets selling my art with my daughter under my arm," said Pulliam. "Sometimes artists have to sell things that they have spent hours and hours on for cheap because they need to buy milk and bread. I've been there and I always wished there was a program that would help artists market their work."
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Eventually, Pulliam says that the the non-profit will work to create studio space for artists in Pine Ridge as well as an affordable local art supply store. "There is a need for a grass roots movement to take on some of here initiatives. We can't afford to wait around for tribal government to create programs. We have to do it on our own," said Pulliam. For more information on the center please visit their website at www.pineridgeartcenter.com (Contact Brandon Ecoffey at editor@lakotacountrytimes.com) Find the award-winning Lakota Country Times on the Internet, Facebook and Twitter and download the new Lakota Country Times app today.
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