PRIMITIVE ART 



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probably an outgrowth of the embroidery in porcupine-quills 

 which was characteristic of the Indians before they came in 

 contact with the whites. The forms which are the constituent 

 elements of decorative motives are very simple and characteristic. 

 They consist throughout of regularly arranged 

 triangles and rectangles, mostly in brilliant and 

 strongly contrasting colors, and often also show- 

 ing sections of varying color. Sometimes the 

 decoration is applied to the whole surface, 

 sometimes only a particular part of the object 

 is decorated. Much of the painting is done on 

 rawhide, but most of the embroidery is made 

 on soft skin. The background of the painting 

 is usually rawhide, while the beaded designs are 

 often set off against a background of white or colored beads. 



The manner of combination of triangles and rectangles is 

 so peculiar, that decorated objects obtained from the Plains 

 Indians can readily be distinguished from objects from any other 

 part of the world. Although there is a certain sameness among 

 all of them, each tribe has certain peculiarities of its own. The 

 most characteristic form, which occurs over and over again 

 in Indian decorative art, is the somewhat pointed triangle, 

 either divided into halves of different color, or including an- 

 other triangle of different color. 

 This form is generally explained as 

 the tepee, the tent of the Plains 

 Indians. Another form which is 

 almost as frequent is a very obtuse 

 triangle, often with a small rec- 

 tangle in the middle. This is in- 

 terpreted as a hill, while the center 

 figure is often called a cave in the 

 hill. We find also very often de- 

 signs consisting of parallel lines, 

 sometimes broken up by equidistant short patterns of different 

 color. These lines are generally interpreted as trails ; and breaks 

 in the lines, as camping-sites or other interruptions of the con- 

 tinuous trail. 



