Thursday, August 22, 2019

Artist of the day, August 22: Frank Buffalo Hyde, a Native American artist (#778)

Based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Frank Buffalo Hyde (1974) was raised on his mother’s Onondaga reservation and studied at the Santa Fe Art Institute and Institute of American Indian Arts. He belongs to the Onondaga Nation, Beaver Clan, and Nez Perce tribe. Before becoming a visual artist, he played in a rock band and dabbled in writing.

Hyde creates satirical, graphic paintings, at once humorous and acerbic, that meld the collective unconscious of the 21st century with his Native American heritage. He transforms street art techniques like stenciling into fine art practices. His explosively colorful, bold works powerfully jolt viewers to consider the miscommunication of cultures. Hyde says, “In the age of the internet, if I can make the viewer slow down for longer than five seconds or create conversation then I have done my job.”

Hyde grew up watching artists like Fritz Scholder and T.C. Cannon poke fun of the pop mythos of the American Indian. He also acknowledges the influence of pop-art giants like Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and Jean-Michel Basquiat to his aesthetic. He challenges notions of what Native American art “should” look like with his satirical portraits and scenes that turn stereotypes on their heads. He roots Native Americans in the digital age and critiques cultural appropriation, America’s fear of otherness, and the reduction of indigenous cultures to mascots and costumes. His numerous paintings of buffalo explore the multiple cultural meanings of his namesake animal over time from legend to burger, Buffalo Bill to Buffalo wings. His explorations of identity, cultural politics, and symbolism document critical issues of our time.

Numerous private and public collections hold his work including the Institute of American Indian Arts, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, The Iroquois Museum, The Longyear Museum, American Indian Arts Museum, Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, and Sprint Corporate Collection.

© 2019. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Frank Buffalo Hyde. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only


Mr Frank Buffalo Hyde

2011, Segway Native

2011, Skyscape

2013, In-Appropriate VI

2014, Forever X-File

2014, Hopi Cheerleader Blue

2014, Puck-Ficasso

2014, Witness culture

2015, Chief

2015, Food Pyramid

Cover of THE Magazine, August 2016

2016, Hulk vs. the Hydra

2016, Tribe Called Redcoats #2

2016, Zombie Nation

2017, Bison selfie

2017, Call me a dog

2017, Meta painting-Cheese burger

2017, Porch

2017, Sheets of empty canvas untouched sheets of clay

2017, State of love and trust

2018, Buffalo Burger-Phase 7

2018, I-Witness culture: American Idol

2018, Master of puppets

2018, Meta painting: Matrilineal

2018, New Mexico in the age of Ultron

2018, Non gated community

2018, She's pretty in pink

2018, Snow globe series: Equestrians Welcome

2018, Tuck Frump

2018, Virtual Sovereignty

2018, When I dip, you dip, we dip
Buffalo Burger Study (Unknown date)

Buffalo totem (Unknown date)


Hopi Pyramid (Unknown date)

In-Appropriate II (Unknown date)

Plaid out (Unknown date)

Reservation Drone Strike in Blue (Unknown date)

War pony (Unknown date)

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