September 21, 2011
Minority & Small Business Week
Mississippi
Alberta
North Portland
Page 19
Vancouver
East County
Beaverton
Art Honors
the Ancestors
Creator finds a
home in Native
American business
by M indy C ooper
T he P ortland O bserver
One day, a coyote cam e across
a village and asked the leader
The Indian name Nixluidix is the name o f this
Tsaglal if her village lived well.
bronze mask created by Native American Lillian Pitt
“Yes, we do’” said the leader. “We
who was inspired by a story o th e r ancestors whom have
have good houses, lots o f salmon
lived in the Colombia River Gorge for over 12,00 0 years.
and lots of berries. W hy do you
ask?” Coyote said, “Changes are
going to come. How will you watch
your people?” But the leader said, photos by M indy C ooper /T he P ortland O bserver
wanted to protect us.”
first touched clay in 1981 at Mt.
“I don’t know .” So with her re
Today, however, Pitt said she Hood Com m unity College where
sponse, the coyote turned her into
is proud to be a Native-Am erican “it was love at first touch,” she
a rock, where she has, and is, still
artist, and she knows her parents said, smiling.
watching everyone today.
would be happy if they could see
She remembers, however, when
“You can still go see her,” said
her art, which encapsulates the she first began working with the
Lillian Pitt, a Pacific N orthw est
traditions and culture, from bas m aterial and w asn’t sure what she
Native-A m erican artist based in
kets to legends, o f her fam ily’s was going to make. At the time,
Portland. “She overlooks the vil
people and the Colom bia River she said I co u ld n ’t throw clay on
lage where my great-great grand
Gorge.
a wheel because o f a bad back.
m other lived.”
Now 67-years-old, Pitt has been “So I took my clay hom e, and
The story o f Tsaglal can be
a working artist for more than 29- looked at the wall, and I saw
seen on a pictograph from the
Colom bia River. “This story was
the inspiration for my tradem ark
piece,” Pitt said, pointing to a mask
hanging on the wall in Q uintana
Gallery, downtown. “H er name is
Nixluidix.”
Pitt acknow ledges the contri
butions of her ancestors called
the River People who have lived
- Lillian Pitt, Pacific Northwest Native-American artist
around the Colom bia R iver Gorge
for more than 12,000 years.
“At the time there was no
years while living within the city. N orthw est clay m asks,” she said.
W ashington or Oregon or delin
Throughout her lifetim e she has “So I thought— I ’ll make a m ask!”
eation o f the river,” she said. “We
created thousands o f handm ade
A lot o f her work, she said is
were all related.”
creations and public art sculp also draw n from rock paintings
W hile growing up, Pitt said her
tures through m ultiple medium , and carvings, which she consid
parents, feeling the need to pro
including silver and gold jew elry, ers to be a “true inspiration.”
tect her from bigotry they experi
print making, bronze sculpture and
Although Pitt recognizes the
enced as young N ative A m eri
m asks, shadow spirits, and her struggles in becom ing a working
cans, didn’t teach her the ways of
favorite— clay.
artist, she said she was very for
her people. “They d id n ’t talk
“Portland is a good place to be tunate to have had a lot o f sup
about our history because there
a N ative-A m erican artist,” she port, especially from Navajo artist
was a lot of m istrust,” she said. Northwest Native American Lillian Pitt, 63, stands inside Quintana
said. “But I was very lucky to be R.C. Gorm an, which she consid
“T hey [her p aren ts] c o u ld n ’t Gallery, downtown, where her artwork rests on the walls amongst
at the right place at the right tim e.” ers “a real blessing.”
speak their language at school or the work o f various other Native American artists who share their
Although she considers her
continued ' y f on page 29
dress traditionally, so my dad culture and traditions through their diverse creations.
self a late-bloom er, Pitt said she
Portland is a good place to be a
Native-American artist. But I was
very lucky to be at the right place at
the right time.