Black Elk, [Bronze]

Dublin Core

Title

Black Elk, [Bronze]

Subject

Animal sculpture--20th century
Figure sculpture, American--20th century

Description

Black Elk: Homage to the Great Spirit
1980
Bronze

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Marshall M. Fredericks
1994.050




Black Elk (1863-1950) was a holy man of the Ogallala Sioux and a spiritual leader for all North American Indians. Black Elk Speaks, an account of his life and of the Ogallala Sioux has become like a Bible for all North American Indians of the twentieth century. This sculpture is a sketch model for a proposed fifteen-foot high monument to be placed in the foothills of Nebraska. Black Elk grasps the sacred pipe which was given to his ancestors to insure that they would multiply and be a good nation. He points it upward and gazes skyward as he gives a prayer of thanks to the Great Spirit for the buffalo. The Sioux are profoundly dependent on the buffalo and the hunt. The physical closeness of Black Elk with the buffalo at his feet suggests the spiritual closeness the Sioux feel with the buffalo.

Creator

Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998

Date

1980

Rights

Use of this image requires permission from the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum

Type

Sculpture

Coverage

University Center (Mich.)

Sculpture Item Type Metadata

Physical Dimensions

15.75" h

Materials

Bronze

Catalog Number

1994.050

Object Location

Main Exhibit Gallery

Provenance

05/26/1994 gifted to MFSM

Files

1994.050.jpg

Citation

Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998, “Black Elk, [Bronze],” Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, accessed December 22, 2024, https://omeka.svsu.edu/items/show/5239.