Monroe Tsatoke (1904–1937) was a Kiowa painter and a member of the Kiowa Six from

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

.Watson, Mary Jo
Tsatoke, Monroe (1904-1937)
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.'' (29 April 2009)

Early life

Monroe Tsatoke was born on 29 September 1904 in

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as th ...

, near present-day

Saddle Mountain, Oklahoma Saddle Mountain is an unincorporated community in Kiowa County, Oklahoma, United States, along State Highway 115. The Saddle Mountain Post Office existed from January 2, 1902, until May 31, 1955. It was named for the Saddle Mountain Baptist Miss ...

. Tsatokee, which means "Hunting Horse", was his Kiowa name. His father was also named Tsatokee, and was a Kiowa scout. His grandmother was a European-American captive.Lester, 571 Tsatoke never received art instruction until Susan Peters, the Kiowa agency field matron, arranged for Mrs. Willie Baze Lane, an artist from Chickasha, Oklahoma, to teach painting classes for young Kiowas in Anadarko. Recognizing the talent of some of the young artists, Peters convinced Swedish-American artist, Oscar Jacobson, director of the University of Oklahoma's School of Art, to accept the Kiowa students into a special program at the school,Pochoir prints of ledger drawings by the Kiowa Five, 1929.
''Smithsonian Institution Research Information System.'' (retrieved 29 April 2009) in which they were coached and encouraged by

Edith Mahier Edith Mahier (1892 – 1967) was an American artist and art instructor who was instrumental in helping develop the talent of the Kiowa Six during their studies at the University of Oklahoma. In 1941, she won the commission to complete the post o ...

Kiowa Six

The Kiowa Six included six artists:

Spencer Asah Spencer Asah (c. 1908–1954) was a Kiowa painter and a member of the Kiowa Six from Oklahoma. Early life Spencer Asah was born in 1908 in Carnegie, Oklahoma. His Kiowa name was Lallo (Little Boy). His father was a buffalo medicine man. Asah's ...

, James Auchiah, Jack Hokeah,

Stephen Mopope Stephen Mopope (1898–1974) was a Kiowa painter, dancer, and Native American flute player from Oklahoma. He was the most prolific member of the group of artists known as the Kiowa Six.Watson, Mary JoMopope, Stephen (1898-1974). ''Oklahoma Histori ...

, Lois Smoky Kaulaity, and Monroe Tsatoke. James Auchiah was the last to join the group at OU in 1926. The Kiowa Six's first major breakthrough into the international fine arts world occurred at the 1928 First International Art Exposition in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Dr. Jacobson arranged for their work to be shown in several other countries and for ''Kiowa Art'', a portfolio of pochoir print artists' paintings, to be published in France.

Individual pursuits

Tsatoke took additional art classes at Bacone College and worked at Indian City USA in Anadarko as a guide. In 1924, Tsatoke married Martha Koomsa. The couple had four children; Jewell, Lee Monette, Ross Maker, and John Thomas. Lee Tsatoke also became a respected Kiowa artist. Monroe and Martha lived in Red Rock, Oklahoma. Besides painting, Tsatoke also farmed, sang at Kiowa ceremonials and participated in fancy war dance. Tsatoke was diagnosed with tuberculosis and joined the Native American Church. He painted about his religious experiences and is credited with creating stylized representations of symbols associated with the Church, such as the water, birds, and feathers.

Public collections

Tsatoke's work can be found in the following public art collections: *Anadarko City Museum * Cleveland Museum of Art *

Chisholm Trail Heritage Center, Duncan, OK Chisholm, Chisholme or Chisolm may refer to: Places Australia * Chisholm, Australian Capital Territory, Canberra * Chisholm, New South Wales, a suburb of Maitland, New South Wales * Division of Chisholm, an electoral district in the Australian ...

* Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art * The George Gustav Heye Center * Gilcrease Museum * Museum of the Great Plains * Heard Museum *Indian Arts and Crafts Board,

US Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the m ...

* Joslyn Art Museum * McNay Art Museum * Museum of Northern Arizona, Katherine Harvey Collection * Museum of New Mexico *Millicent Rogers Museum * Oklahoma Historical Society *Oklahoma Museum of Natural History * Philbrook Museum of Art *Seminole Public Library *

Woolaroc Museum Woolaroc is a museum and wildlife preserve located in the Osage Hills of Northeastern Oklahoma on Oklahoma State Highway 123 about southwest of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and north of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Woolaroc was established in 1925 as the ranch ...

Lester, 572

Death

In 1934, the Oklahoma Historical Society commissioned Tsatoke to paint several murals. Although ill with tuberculosis, he worked on the murals until his death.Jacobson House Native Art Center: About the Kiowa Six
''Jacobson House Native Art Center.'' (retrieved 21 July 2020) Tsatoke died on 3 February 1937 from tuberculosis at the age of 32 years.

Notes

References

*Lester, Patrick D. ''The Biographical Directory of Native American Painters''. Norman and London: The Oklahoma University Press, 1995. . *Swan, Daniel C. ''Peyote Religious Art: Symbols and Faith and Belief.'' Jackson, University of Mississippi Press, 1999. . *Wyckoff, Lydia L., ed. ''Visions and voices : Native American painting from the Philbrook Museum of Art''. Tulsa, OK: Philbrook Museum of Art, 1996. .

External links

Jacobson House Native Art Center: About the Kiowa Six

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsatoke, Monroe Kiowa people Native American painters Painters from Oklahoma People from Kiowa County, Oklahoma 1904 births 1937 deaths Native American Church People from Anadarko, Oklahoma People from Noble County, Oklahoma