Cheyenne Sun Dance—The Third Day
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.This painting is one of Dick West’s masterpieces and a classic example of his portrayal of traditional Cheyenne life. The work provides details of the Sun Dance, an annual Plains ceremony celebrating the regeneration of the living earth. Here, West conveys the visual richness of this most sacred event, representing important elements—the ceremonial altar, ritual acts, and symbolic body paint—with great accuracy. Although the U.S. government banned the Sun Dance during the early days of reservation life, around 1880–1900, the ceremony flourishes today.
Artwork Details
- Title: Cheyenne Sun Dance—The Third Day
- Artist: Walter Richard "Dick" West Sr., Wah-pah-nah-yah or Wapah Nahya, Light Foot Runner (Native American, Southern Cheyenne, Oklahoma, 1912–1996)
- Date: 1949
- Geography: United States, Oklahoma
- Culture: Southern Cheyenne
- Medium: Casein on paper
- Dimensions: 24 5/8 × 35 1/8 in. (62.5 × 89.2 cm)
- Classification: Paper-Paintings
- Credit Line: Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Museum purchase (1949.20)
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing