The sewing machine was invented during the First Industrial Revolution (1760-1840). The technology was brought to Native American communities and disseminated through western assimilation practices, but also embraced by Native people for its ease in creating garments. My grandmother, Thelma Begay, was required by the U.S. government to attend boarding school. There, she learned various western skills like sewing; she eventually became a professional seamstress. When I was a child, my grandmother would sew my Navajo blouses and tiered skirts from vibrant colors of velvet, satin, and cotton. Growing up, I always considered these “traditional” pieces of clothing. But what pieces and styles get the label of “traditional” Native American clothing? And how did the sewing machine transform the ways in which Native people wear clothing? This online exhibit reflects these questions.

The pieces chosen for this exhibit were made by Native people for other Native people to wear. Out of the twenty-one pieces included, they originate from eleven different tribes, mostly from the Southwest region of the United States. All of the items come from the School for Advanced Research (SAR) Indian Arts Research Center (IARC) permanent collection and were made by identified and unidentified Native American artists and donated by a myriad of people. The twenty-one garments are divided into four categories: Pre-Sewing Machine, Combination of Traditional and Contemporary, Innovation, and High Fashion/Couture. Within each category is a number of pieces with the goal of displaying four thematic snapshots of Native American fashion. The creativity of Indigenous people is astounding and this is evident in all four categories, which tell a story of evolution within identity, culture, and aesthetics.
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Curated by Sháńdíín Brown (Diné), 2020-2021 Anne Ray Intern.