North Dakota
Great Plains / Lakota Sioux

Wood, hide, pigment
ca. 21st century
Diameter: 14 in
Membranophones – Directly Struck – Hand Drums

This is a stretched rawhide drum made by Taos Drum Maker Henry Samora.  It features a silk screen image of a ‘Charging Bear’ design on the front signed by Lakota Artist Carl Winters.  The charging bear possesses courage, strength, and quickness that designate powerful spiritual qualities.  This stylized, circular interpretation, is inspired by historical hide paintings, symbolizing the bear in the hoop of life.

Lakota artist Carl Winters is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota.  Winters has received numerous awards for his oil and acrylic paintings on canvas, hand drums, and buffalo, deer and elk hides.  He has a commissioned mural in the Denver International Airport and has been featured on CNN’s “Across America” and in Southwest Art.  His works appear in museums, galleries, and private collections worldwide.  He writes, “I strive to communicate the validity of the Indian experience in hopes that my work will serve as a vehicle for cross-cultural understanding and respect.”