Spencer Asah
Encyclopedia
Spencer Asah was a Kiowa
painter, one of the Kiowa Five
, from Oklahoma
.
. His Kiowa name was Lallo (Little Boy). His father was a buffalo medicine man. His father provided Asah extensive cultural information that he later used in his art.
Asah attended St. Patrick's Indian Mission School in Anadarko, Oklahoma
, where he received his first art instruction from Sister Olivia Taylor, a Choctaw
nun. Government field matron Susan Peters arranged for Mrs. Willie Baze Lane, an artist from Chickasha, Oklahoma
, to provide further art instruction for young Kiowa artists, including Asah. Recognizing the talent of some of the young artists, Peters convinced Swedish-American artist Oscar Jacobson, director of the University of Oklahoma
's School of Art, to accept the Kiowa students into a special program at the school.
, Jack Hokeah
, Stephen Mopope
, Lois Smoky
, and Monroe Tsatoke
. In 1926 Asah, Hokeah, Tsatoke, Mopope, and Smoky moved to Norman, Oklahoma
and began their art studies at OU. Smoky returned home late in 1927, but Auchiah joined the group that year.
In the 1928, the Kiowa Five had their major breakthrough into international fine arts' world by exhibiting at the First International Art Exposition in Prague
, Czechoslovakia. Dr. Jacobson arranged for their work to be shown in several other countries and for Kiowa Art, a portfolio of pochoir prints artists' paintings to be published in France.
circuit. He died in 1954.
Kiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
painter, one of the Kiowa Five
Kiowa Five
The Kiowa Five or Kiowa Six is a group of six Kiowa artists from Oklahoma in the 20th century. They were Spencer Asah, James Auchiah, Jack Hokeah, Stephen Mopope, Lois Smoky, and Monroe Tsatoke.-Background:...
, from Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
.
Early life
Spencer Asah was born around 1905 in Carnegie, OklahomaCarnegie, Oklahoma
Carnegie is a town in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,723 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Carnegie is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
. His Kiowa name was Lallo (Little Boy). His father was a buffalo medicine man. His father provided Asah extensive cultural information that he later used in his art.
Asah attended St. Patrick's Indian Mission School in Anadarko, Oklahoma
Anadarko, Oklahoma
Anadarko is a city in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 6,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Caddo County.-Early History:Anadarko got its name when its post office was established in 1873...
, where he received his first art instruction from Sister Olivia Taylor, a Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
nun. Government field matron Susan Peters arranged for Mrs. Willie Baze Lane, an artist from Chickasha, Oklahoma
Chickasha, Oklahoma
Chickasha is a city in and the county seat, business and employment center of Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 15,850 at the 2000 census. Chickasha is home to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma and hosts an annual Festival of Light celebration located at...
, to provide further art instruction for young Kiowa artists, including Asah. Recognizing the talent of some of the young artists, Peters convinced Swedish-American artist Oscar Jacobson, director of the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
's School of Art, to accept the Kiowa students into a special program at the school.
Kiowa Five
The Kiowa Five included six artists: Spencer Asah, James AuchiahJames Auchiah
James Auchiah was a Kiowa painter, one of the Kiowa Five, from Oklahoma.-Early life:James Auchiah was born in on 17 November 1906 in Oklahoma Territory, near present day Meers and Medicine Park, Oklahoma...
, Jack Hokeah
Jack Hokeah
Jack Hokeah was a Kiowa painter, one of the Kiowa Five, from Oklahoma.-Early life:Jack Hokeah was born around 1900 or 1902 in western Oklahoma. He was orphaned at a very young age and raised by his grandmother. His grandfather was the Kiowa warrior, White Horse.Hokeah attend St...
, Stephen Mopope
Stephen Mopope
Stephen Mopope was a Kiowa painter, dancer, and flute player of Spanish descent, from Oklahoma. He was the most prolific member of the Kiowa Five-Early life:...
, Lois Smoky
Lois Smoky
Lois Smoky Kaulaity was a Kiowa painter, one of the Kiowa Five, from Oklahoma.-Early life:Lois Smoky was born in 1907 near Anadarko, Oklahoma. Bougetah was her Kiowa name, meaning "Of the Dawn." Her father, Enoch Smoky, was the great-nephew of Kiowa Chief Appiatan.Smoky first studied art at St...
, and Monroe Tsatoke
Monroe Tsatoke
Monroe Tsatoke was a Kiowa painter, one of the Kiowa Five, from Oklahoma.-Early life:Monroe Tsatoke was born on 29 September 1904 in Oklahoma Territory, near present day Saddle Mountain, Oklahoma. Tsatokee was his Kiowa name, which meant "Hunting Horse." His father was also named Tsatokee, and was...
. In 1926 Asah, Hokeah, Tsatoke, Mopope, and Smoky moved to Norman, Oklahoma
Norman, Oklahoma
Norman is a city in Cleveland County, Oklahoma, United States, and is located south of downtown Oklahoma City. It is part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, Norman was to have 110,925 full-time residents, making it the third-largest city in Oklahoma and the...
and began their art studies at OU. Smoky returned home late in 1927, but Auchiah joined the group that year.
In the 1928, the Kiowa Five had their major breakthrough into international fine arts' world by exhibiting at the First International Art Exposition in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czechoslovakia. Dr. Jacobson arranged for their work to be shown in several other countries and for Kiowa Art, a portfolio of pochoir prints artists' paintings to be published in France.
Public collections
Asah's work can be found in the following public art collections:- Anadarko City Museum
- Denver Art MuseumDenver Art MuseumThe 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....
- Gilcrease MuseumGilcrease MuseumGilcrease Museum is a museum located northwest of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The museum now houses the world's largest, most comprehensive collection of art of the American West as well as a growing collection of art and artifacts from Central and South America...
- Heard MuseumHeard MuseumThe Heard Museum of Native Cultures and Art is a museum located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. There is also the Heard Museum North Scottsdale branch in Scottsdale and the Heard Museum West branch in Surprise....
- Indian Arts and Crafts Board, US Department of the Interior
- Indian Arts and Crafts Board, Denman Collection
- The George Gustav Heye CenterThe George Gustav Heye CenterThe George Gustav Heye Center is a branch of the National Museum of the American Indian in New York City, USA. The museum is part of the Smithsonian Institution...
- McNay Art MuseumMcNay Art MuseumThe McNay Art Museum, founded in 1950 in San Antonio, is the first modern art museum in the State of Texas. The museum was created by Marion Koogler McNay's original bequest of most of her fortune, her important art collection and her 24-room Spanish Colonial Revival-style mansion that sits on ...
- Museum of Northern ArizonaMuseum of Northern ArizonaThe Museum of Northern Arizona is a museum in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, that was established as a repository for Native American artifacts and natural history specimens from the Colorado Plateau.The museum was founded in 1928 by zoologist Dr. Harold S...
- Museum of Northern Arizona, Katherine Harvey Collection
- Museum of New MexicoMuseum of New MexicoThe Museum of New Mexico consists of six separate institutions in Santa Fe, New Mexico, including :* New Mexico Museum of Art* Palace of the Governors* Museum of Indian Arts & Culture/Laboratory of Anthropology* Museum of International Folk Art...
- Oklahoma Science and Art Foundation, Gerrer Collection
- Fred Jones Jr. Museum of ArtFred Jones Jr. Museum of ArtThe Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is an art museum on the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman, Oklahoma.-Overview:The University of Oklahoma’s Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is one of the finest university art museums in the United States. Strengths of the nearly 16,000-object permanent collection...
- Philbrook Museum of ArtPhilbrook Museum of ArtThe Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma is an art museum and former home of Oklahoma oil pioneer Waite Phillips and his wife Genevieve Phillips. , the museum has a staff of 60 and an operating budget of nearly $6 million....
- Southern Plains Indian Museum
- Woolaroc MuseumWoolarocWoolaroc is located in the Osage Hills of Northeastern Oklahoma on Oklahoma State Highway 123 about southwest of Bartlesville, Oklahoma and north of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Woolaroc was established in 1925 as the ranch retreat of oilman Frank Phillips...
Later life
Spencer Asah was a traditional singer and dancer and active in Oklahoma's powwowPowWow
PowWow is a wireless sensor network mote developed by the Cairn team of IRISA/INRIA. The platform is currently based on IEEE 802.15.4 standard radio transceiver and on an MSP430 microprocessor...
circuit. He died in 1954.