| dc.description.abstract | Since the beginning of time, Cherokees have been artists and artisans. From a cultural standpoint, art has always functioned differently within Cherokee society than it does in Western society. Many Indigenous arts have been more than ornamental pieces or decorations. Cherokee and Indigenous arts have served and do serve specific purposes, from practical to ceremonial. Cherokee women, being the keepers of tradition, have always had a strong hand in the survival and renewal of ancient Cherokee art forms and aesthetics. Despite the effects of colonization, Cherokee art has survived, adapted, and continues to reinvent itself through contemporary art. America Meredith’s work fits within the tradition of Cherokee art by using Cherokee aesthetics as a form of cultural continuance. She moves through the mainstream art world shaping and reshaping our understandings of what Cherokee art is. Her work as a Cherokee artist encapsulates the innovation of a contemporary Cherokee artist and the responsibility of a Cherokee woman. | en_US |
