Art Institute of Chicago

Wearing Blanket

Unknown weaver

Date

c. 1885

Medium

Wool, wedge tapestry weave

Culture

Navajo

Department

Textiles

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

In the late 1800s, Navajo weavers developed a new, more colorful and complex style of weaving. They began incorporating wool yarns that had been dyed with vibrant commercial dyes, made available through expanded railroads. They often rendered the junctures between colors as serrated, zigzag lines, creating dynamic patterns that visually vibrate. For this reason, these textiles have come to be called “eye dazzlers.” This “eye-dazzler” weaving is part of a collection of Native American art that belonged to Father Peter Powell (1928–2022). In 1961 Father Powell founded St. Augustine’s Center, which offered spiritual and social services to members of Chicago’s Native American communities. In addition to being an Anglican priest, Powell was also a member of the Northern Cheyenne Chiefs Society, an award-winning scholar of Cheyenne art and culture, and a senior research fellow at the Newberry Library.

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