Amanda Crowe
Encyclopedia
Amanda Crowe was an Eastern Band Cherokee woodcarver and educator from Cherokee, North Carolina
.
, North Carolina. By the age of four, she had decided to become an artist. Of her children, Amanda said: "Every spare minute was spent in carving or studying anything available concerning art... " At the age of eight, she was already selling her carvings.
Both her parents died when Amanda was very young. By the time she reached high school, her foster mother arranged for her to stay in Chicago, where Amanda graduated from high school and attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She then earned the John Quincy Adams fellowship for foreign study in 1952, and she chose to study sculpture with Jose De Creeft
at the Instituto Allende in San Miguel de Allende
, Mexico
. She ultimately earned her Master of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1952.
. She kept that position for almost four decades and has taught wood carving to over 2000 students.
Her sculptures were often animal figures, and she was particularly known for her expressive bears. Her work is streamlined, highly stylized, and smoothly carved. She has worked with stone and clay, but wood has been her favorite media and she carved with local woods such as wild cherry, buckeye, and black walnut.
Her art is sometimes compared to the work of Willard Stone
. Art scholar, Esther Bockhoff writes that Amanda Crowe was "undoubtedly one of the primary influences on the resurgence of Cherokee carving." Public collections that own her work include the Cleveland Museum of Natural History
, the United States Department of the Interior
, and the National Museum of the American Indian
. Among many awards, Amanda won the North Carolina Folk Heritage Award
in 2000. She has exhibited her work in museums such as the Art Institute of Chicago
, the Atlanta Art Museum, the Denver Art Museum
, the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, the Asheville Art Museum
, and venues in Germany and the United Kingdom.
She also illustrated the book, Cherokee Legends and the Trail of Tears, first published in 1956 and reprinted several times since.
Amanda died in 2004. Many of the contemporary Eastern Band Cherokee sculptors today have studied under her.
Cherokee, North Carolina
Cherokee is a town in Swain County, North Carolina, USA, within the Qualla Boundary land trust. It is located in the Oconaluftee River Valley, near the intersection of U.S. Route 19 and U.S...
.
Early life
Amanda Crowe was born on 16 July 1928 in the Qualla BoundaryQualla Boundary
The Qualla Boundary is the territory where the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians reside in western North Carolina.-Location:...
, North Carolina. By the age of four, she had decided to become an artist. Of her children, Amanda said: "Every spare minute was spent in carving or studying anything available concerning art... " At the age of eight, she was already selling her carvings.
Both her parents died when Amanda was very young. By the time she reached high school, her foster mother arranged for her to stay in Chicago, where Amanda graduated from high school and attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She then earned the John Quincy Adams fellowship for foreign study in 1952, and she chose to study sculpture with Jose De Creeft
Jose de Creeft
José De Creeft was a Spanish-born American sculptor and teacher.-Life and work:...
at the Instituto Allende in San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende is a city and municipality located in the far eastern part of the state of Guanajuato in central Mexico. It is 274 km from Mexico City and 97 km from the state capital of Guanajuato...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. She ultimately earned her Master of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1952.
Art and teaching career
In 1953, the Cherokee Historical Association invited Amanda back to North Carolina to teach studio art at Cherokee High SchoolCherokee High School (Cherokee, North Carolina)
Cherokee High School is a public high school located in Cherokee, North Carolina. The school was originally housed in a 1950s/1960s building, but moved to a new, modern, beautiful, state-of-the-art, green facility in 2010....
. She kept that position for almost four decades and has taught wood carving to over 2000 students.
Her sculptures were often animal figures, and she was particularly known for her expressive bears. Her work is streamlined, highly stylized, and smoothly carved. She has worked with stone and clay, but wood has been her favorite media and she carved with local woods such as wild cherry, buckeye, and black walnut.
Her art is sometimes compared to the work of Willard Stone
Willard Stone
Willard Stone was an important Native American artist of the 20th century, best known for his wood sculptures done in a distinctively personal, flowing style inspired by Art Deco.-Biography:...
. Art scholar, Esther Bockhoff writes that Amanda Crowe was "undoubtedly one of the primary influences on the resurgence of Cherokee carving." Public collections that own her work include the Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Cleveland Museum of Natural History
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum located approximately five miles east of downtown Cleveland, Ohio in University Circle, a 550-acre concentration of educational, cultural and medical institutions...
, the United States Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
, and the National Museum of the American Indian
National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum operated under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution that is dedicated to the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the native Americans of the Western Hemisphere...
. Among many awards, Amanda won the North Carolina Folk Heritage Award
North Carolina Folk Heritage Award
The North Carolina Folk Heritage Award is an annual award given out by the North Carolina Arts Council in recognition of traditional artists from the U.S. state of North Carolina. The award was created in 1989. The program was suspended in 2008 due to budget problems. -1990:*The Badget Sisters,...
in 2000. She has exhibited her work in museums such as the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
, the Atlanta Art Museum, the Denver Art Museum
Denver Art Museum
The Denver Art Museum is an art museum in Denver, Colorado located in Denver's Civic Center.It is known for its collection of American Indian art,and has a comprehensive collection numbering more than 68,000 works from across the world....
, the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, the Asheville Art Museum
Asheville Art Museum
The Asheville Art Museum is the only community based nonprofit visual art organization in Western North Carolina and is Accredited by the American Association of Museums. Its vision is to transform lives through art...
, and venues in Germany and the United Kingdom.
She also illustrated the book, Cherokee Legends and the Trail of Tears, first published in 1956 and reprinted several times since.
Amanda died in 2004. Many of the contemporary Eastern Band Cherokee sculptors today have studied under her.