Transformation Carving
Artist
Earl Mayac
(North American Indian, Inupiaq, 1938 - 2010)
Dateca. 1975
MediumMarine mammal ivory and pigment
DimensionsApproximate: 1 3/8 × 2 7/8 × 3 7/16 inches (3.49 × 7.3 × 8.73 cm)
Credit LineBequest of Donald D. Jones
Object number2001.3.84 A,B
On View
Not on viewCollections
Gallery LabelIn this contemporary carving the hunter and prey are joined as one, an ancient concept among many Native American hunting peoples. Through ceremony, ritual acts and even finely decorated clothing intended to please prey animals, hunters affirmed their unity with the spirit world and the creatures upon which their existence depended. Here, however, the skill and bravery of the lone, parka-clad hunter crawling across the ice and the potential ferocity of the polar bear are equally expressed, perhaps posing the question: Who is the hunter and who is the hunted?
Torrence, Gaylord, ed. Continuum: North American Native Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Kansas City: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
CopyrightThis work is copyrighted. Contact the copyright holder for permission to reproduce.
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R78-5/19
