Oscar Howe papers
Content Description
The Oscar Howe papers contain material related to the life and artwork of the artist Oscar Howe, including his teaching career at the University of South Dakota.
The collection is organized into three subgroups: University papers, Family papers and Photographic materials. The majority of the materials are in the University papers which were collected by John Day who served as University Art Galleries Director and Dean of Fine Arts. These materials include reference materials collected about Howe’s life, art and legacy such as news clippings, publications, interviews and other materials of John Day related to the management of the Oscar Howe Art Center and Howe’s artwork at the University. The Family papers consist of materials from Oscar Howe and his family (wife and daughter) which include some of Howe’s correspondence, teaching materials, news clippings, exhibition materials and research materials on art and Native Americans history. Also included are scrapbooks compiled by Heidi Howe. Books from Oscar Howe’s library related to art and Native American history can also be found in the library catalog. Photographic materials contain photographs, negatives and slides depicting subjects such as Howe’s education, family, art works, military service, and employment at the University of South Dakota.
Dates
- Creation: 1915 - 2016
Creator
- Howe, Oscar, 1915-1983 (Person)
- Day, John A. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection contains some restricted material. Performance reviews are restricted. Researchers are advised to contact the Archives and Special Collections prior to visiting.
Conditions Governing Use
Researchers must obtain a signed Permission to Publish Form if they wish to reproduce, broadcast, or otherwise disseminate information from published and unpublished works held by ASC. Permission to reproduce, broadcast, or otherwise disseminate information materials from ASC does not constitute permission from the holder of copyright or literary rights. The researcher is responsible for securing permission from the copyright holder to publish or reproduce content from materials found in the collections.
Biographical / Historical
Yanktonai Dakota artist Oscar Howe was born May 13, 1915 at Joe Creek on the Crow Creek Indian Reservation in South Dakota to George Howe and Ella Not Afraid of Bear. He was named Mazuha Hokshina, “Trader Boy.” He left Pierre Indian School in 1935 and attended Santa Fe Indian School entering The Studio, an art program established by Dorothy Dunn. After graduation in 1938 he worked as an art instructor at the Pierre Indian School before joining the South Dakota Works Progress Administration as a mural artist in Mitchell and Mobridge, South Dakota. From 1942 to 1945 Howe served in the United States Army in the European Theatre. While in Germany he met Adelheid (Heidi) Hampel; they married in 1947. Their daughter Inge Dawn was born in 1948. From 1948 through 1971 he designed panels for the Mitchell Corn Palace. Howe earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dakota Wesleyan University in 1952 and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Oklahoma in 1954. He taught at Pierre High School until 1957 and then became artist-in-residence and professor of art at the University of South Dakota from 1957 through 1980 before retiring as Professor Emeritus of the Department of Art in 1980. Oscar Howe died in 1983.
Oscar Howe’s art was exhibited all over the world including numerous one-man shows. He earned many honors and awards including honoree on the television program This is Your Life in 1960, Artist Laureate of South Dakota in 1960, U.S. Department of State Lecturer to the Near East and South Asia in 1971, the South Dakota Governor’s Award for Creative Achievement in 1973, the Waite Philips Trophy for Outstanding Contributions to American Indian Art and numerous prizes in the Indian Annual Exhibition from the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Early in his career Howe moved away from the style of painting taught at the Santa Fe Indian School for a more abstract style. It was characterized by bright color, motion and pristine lines. He aspired to bridge tradition with the contemporary world to communicate Indian values and ideas and to break out of stereotypes imposed on Indian artists.
Adelheid (Heidi) Hampel Howe: wife
Inge Dawn Howe Maresh: daughter
Waltraut Hamel Kondert: Heidi’s sister
Clara Howe, Eleanor Howe, Judith Howe, Leslie Howe, Reynold Howe, and Walter Howe: Howe’s brother and his family
Edward Howe and Walter Howe: Howe’s brothers
George Howe: Howe’s father
Ella Not Afraid of Bear Howe: Howe’s mother
Not Afraid of Bear (Fearless Bear): Howe’s maternal grandfather
Bone Necklace: Howe’s paternal great grandfather
White Ghost: Howe’s paternal great uncle
Don’t Know Howe (On Spe Sni): Howe’s paternal grandfather
Extent
63.50 Linear Feet (79 document boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Oscar Howe papers contain material related to the life and artwork of the artist Oscar Howe, including his teaching career at the University of South Dakota.
Arrangement
This collection is divided into 3 subgroups: University papers, family papers, and photographic materials.
Subgroup 1: University papers, 1915-2016
Series I: Administrative files, 1946-2015
Series II: Chronology files, 1915-2010
Series III: Publications, 1944-1998
Subseries 1: Writings, 1974-1997
Subseries 2: Awards and honors, 1968-1982
Subseries 3: Exhibitions, 1953-1998
Subseries 4: Howe works, 1944-1991
Subseries 5: Howe mentions, 1959-1985
Subseries 6: Brochures, 1967-1991
Series IV: Research files, 1930-2007
Series V: News clippings, 1960-1996
Series VI: Teaching career, 1950-1982
Series VII: Oral History, 1954-1995
Series VIII: Audio-visual materials, 1940-2005
Subseries 1: Audio, 1953-2005
Subseries 2: Video, 1940-2002
Series IX: Oversize, 2015-2016
Subgroup 2: Family papers, 1903-2011
Series I: Biographical and personal, 1933-2011
Series II: Teaching materials, 1965-1976
Series III: Art career, 1947-2005
Series IV: Honors and awards, 1947-1981
Series V: Correspondence, 1947-2010
Series VI: American Specialist, 1971
Series VII: Subject files, 1935-2011
Series VIII: Publications, 1959-2010
Subseries 1: Writings, 1959-2010
Subseries 2: Howe works, 1960-1995
Series IX: Howe library, 1903-2005
Series X: News clippings, 1941-1997
Series XI: Audio-visual materials, 1960-1970
Series XII: Oversize
Subgroup 3: Photographic materials, 1900-2010 (bulk dates, 1935-1983)
Series I: Black and White Photographs, 1900-1990
Subseries 1: Awards/Special Recognition
Subseries 2: Copy Photographs/Proof Sheets
Subseries 3: Education
Subseries 4: Family
Subseries 5: Gravesite
Subseries 6: Howe and Unidentified
Subseries 7: Military
Subseries 8: Miscellaneous
Subseries 9: Museums/Gallery Spaces
Subseries 10: Oscar Howe Retrospective Exhibition
Subseries 11: “Oscar Howe: The Sioux Painter”
Subseries 12: Professional Employment
Subseries 13: Unidentified
Subseries 14: Works
Subseries 15: Oversize
Series II: Color Photographs, 1934-2010
Subseries 1: Awards/Special Recognition
Subseries 2: Family
Subseries 3: Gravesite
Subseries 4: Howe and Unidentified
Subseries 5: Miscellaneous
Subseries 6: Museums/Gallery Spaces
Subseries 7: Oscar Howe Elementary School
Subseries 8: Oscar Howe Memorial Lecture
Subseries 9: Professional Employment
Subseries 10: Unidentified
Subseries 11: Works
Series III: Photographs with Conservation Concerns, 1935-1981
Subseries 1: Awards/Special Recognition
Subseries 2: Copy Photographs/Proof Sheets
Subseries 3: Education
Subseries 4: Family
Subseries 5: Miscellaneous
Subseries 6: Museums/Gallery Spaces
Subseries 7: Professional Employment
Subseries 8: Works
Subseries 9: Unidentified
Subseries 10: Oversize
Series IV: Black and White Negatives (Cold Storage), 1919-1983
Subseries 1: Awards/Special Recognition
Subseries 2: Education
Subseries 3: Family
Subseries 4: Military
Subseries 5: Miscellaneous
Subseries 6: Oscar Howe Retrospective Exhibition
Subseries 7: Professional Employment
Subseries 8: Unidentified
Subseries 9: Works
Series V: Color Negatives (Cold Storage), 1940-1980s
Subseries 1: Family
Subseries 2: Miscellaneous
Subseries 3: Museums/Gallery Spaces
Subseries 4: Professional Employment
Subseries 5: Works
Series VI: Slides, 1915-1982
Subseries 1: Awards/Special Recognition
Subseries 2: Education
Subseries 3: Family
Subseries 4: Military
Subseries 5: Miscellaneous
Subseries 6: Museums/Gallery Spaces
Subseries 7: Oscar Howe Retrospective Exhibition
Subseries 8: Professional Employment
Subseries 9: Unidentified
Subseries 10: Works
Series VII: Identification Photocopies
Subseries 1: Black and White Photographs
Subseries 2: Color Photographs
Subseries 3: Photographs with Conservation Concerns
Subseries 4: Albums
- Title
- Oscar Howe papers
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Doris Peterson and Lisa Duncan
- Date
- 2016 July
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the USD Archives and Special Collections Repository