Inter-tribal Native American Pow Wow

Native American cultural gatherings, called Pow Wow, are educational to all those who attend. There is history, a spiritual context, dances, singing and art displays. I am a novice in the ceremonial traditions of such inter-tribal gatherings, but over the past 5 years have attended a few Pow Wows and actively pursued a self-education of their historical context.

This morning I went to the annual Pow Wow in Prescott. After buying a Navajo cartouche pendent from a jeweler who works with copper, silver and turquoise stone, I attended the Grand Entry of the day. This is a large scale gathering where many dance, sing and promise their involvement in supporting tribal communities.

As a street photographer, any gathering with so many people is heaven to me! But I am always respectful of the norms or rules in photographing people and respecting their privacy. My goal is never to “photograph people” but to capture a human behavior or attitude that is generic and relevant across cultures.

And I will not show faces in this essay. BUT, there was one split second when a young girl walked into my camera’s field of view and I could not resist taking a non-identifying profile shot. And then she walked away.

Here is that photo:

What makes this shot intriguing is what was written on that blanket:

So, she was displaying the name and history of a soldier. She wanted all at the Pow Wow to learn about CPL Eddie C. Begaye. Therefore I feel that my posting a profile of her and the name of the soldier is doing what she wanted to do, but hopefully to a much larger audience among the readers of my blogs.

During the Grand Entry, I focused on the traditional attires, the chanting rhythm, and the sacred paraphernalia used during the dance to the beat of the drum.

I like the sacred representation of feathers, the rattle of metal beads, and the elegance of turquoise stones:

Also the dance movement captured on a two-dimensional plane:

 And perhaps the rapprochement between the Southwest, the west and native cultures:

… As I often try, I stayed away from taking photos of portrayers of Native American warriors on horses, tribal leaders in feather or buffalo skin head covers, and children wearing deerskin moccasins.

My goal is to tell a story. A story people own but sometimes do not know they are telling it.

September 23, 2018

© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2018