Indian Country

by Richard West and Gwendolyn Cates

Book Overview

Indian Country is a major work of photojournalism: a beautiful, affecting, and candid portrait of Native American life today. Acclaimed photographer Gwendolen Cates, who has been going to Indian... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802116965
• ISBN13: 9780802116963
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 3.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 11.0" x 11.0"

Customer Reviews

A visual and visceral treat

I met Cates at the Native American Music Awards in 2001 and many of the artists photographed for her book were there. All of them were beaming at the how beautiful the book is, and Cates was even getting autographs! She captures a lot of the truth - good and bad- about modern Native America.

Hauntingly Beautiful Book

When I opened the first page of this book I was totally mesermized with it and did not put it down until I looked through the whole thing. I have been all over the Southwest and have many Native friends and this book brought such warm feelings to me. I like the way it shows the different ways the people live, and diminishes the sterotype that so many think about when they think of "Indians".

A Return Ticket to Indian Country

Being an individual who has travelled from England and been most fortunate and privileged to be hosted by and reside within Anishinaabe Reservation Communities in Wisconsin, I found this book, both, extremely exciting and enthralling. Its vivid content evoked many happy memories for me. I particularly like the synopsis, by Gwendolen, that appears directly on the inside front cover pages. This summary is written in a pace and style that amply encapsulates her journey, recollections and experiences as she travelled through Indian Country and with which I can so readily and personally identify. I, also, thoroughly enjoyed, indeed valued the contributions by Native writers, such as Sherman Alexie, feeling they served to reinforce the integrity of the book; one which I am delighted to include within my collection.I am not usually, particularly enamoured with black and white photgraphs but strangely it was these very images, throughout the book, that made the greatest impact upon myself, finding them to be most compelling, poignant, haunting and thought provoking. The black and white pictures are adequately balanced by a selection of color plates that include some rather beautiful scenic shots, allowing Gwendolen the opportunity to demonstrate her abundant and skilful photographic work executed with professionalism.This is an exceptional book containing wonderful photographs of diverse peoples, in many geographic locations, highlighting different events, occasions and moods. It is compiled by an individual who obviously has a fond regard, deep respect and a well-deserved admiration for Native People and their Cultures, while extending a high degree of sensitivity towards her subjects. The emotions portrayed throughout this work are sad, happy, tragic, painful, inspiring, friendly and humorous. Overall, I believe this is an important and significant book inasmuch as it portrays 'The People' as REAL human beings with different cultures, lifestyles, values and attitudes, subsequently dispensing with numerous misconceptions and the inevitable stereotypes.Although American Indian People have been heinously wronged in the past and continue to endure gross injustices against them, today, they always have, currently do and will continue to make a valuable and unique contribution to the dominant society. I, also, believe this volume serves to illustrate Native People are in the unenviable position of having to balance and blend two starkly contrasting paradigms while endeavoring to, quite rightly, retain their Treaty Rights, Land Base, Traditional Cultures, Languages, Education methods, Customs, Spiritual Ceremonies, Arts and Crafts, now and for future generations. This ongoing process is accomplished through a tremendous resolve that is evident within these pages, while upholding their dignity, pride, honor and Cultural identity. This book portrays resolute peoples possessing a selfless courage and I express my sincere gratitude to them for allowing us, the r

Portraits of the people

This is a beautiful book of astonishing images of people and landscapes, which forced me to think again about the place of Native Americans in this land. The astonishing spaces of reservation land are there because people were uprooted from soft and prosperous valleys; the names for the people are those imposed by European migrants: Indian, Native American. And yet here they are, occupying every role in modern society and in their ancient societies, living comfortably or in poverty in reservations or at all levels in cities and suburbia. Gwendolyn Cates captures their lives respectully with an artist's eye -- her approach could not be further from the distanced, anthropological staging of Edward Curtis. Do look at this book.

beautiful

what a great, great book! gwendolen cates has a terrific eye.