Anita Fields facts for kids

Anita Fields, born in 1951, is a talented artist from the Osage Nation and Muscogee tribes. She is a Native American artist who works with clay and textiles. Anita lives and creates her art in Oklahoma. She is an official member of the Osage Nation.

Anita Fields is famous around the world for her ceramic art. She often makes everyday items like purses, moccasins, and dresses out of clay. She is also known for her special art displays in museums. These displays are called conceptual installations. Anita is also skilled in ribbonwork, a traditional art form.

Many important museums have Anita Fields' artwork. These include the Heard Museum in Arizona and the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma. Her art is also at the Museum of Art and Design in New York City. The National Museum of the American Indian at the Smithsonian Institution also has her pieces. You can also find her work at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas.

Her art has been shown in many exhibitions. One was called Who Stole the Tepee at the National Museum of the American Indian. Another was Legacy of the Generations: American Indian Women Potters. This show was at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She also had a family exhibition called Fluent Generations: The Art of Anita, Tom and Yatika Fields. This was at the Sam Noble Museum. Her work was also part of Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists. This was a traveling show from 2019 to 2020. It visited the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Frist Art Museum, the Renwick Gallery (part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum), and the Philbrook Museum of Art.

In 2019, Anita Fields took part in a project at the Osage Nation Museum. It was called "Voices from the Drum." For this project, 19 drums were given to skilled Osage artists. Each artist created a special design for their drum. Drums are very important in Osage culture. These drums were made by hand by Rock Pipestem.

Currently, Anita Fields is working at the Tulsa Artist Fellowship in Tulsa. She also serves as an Alternate Member on the Osage Election Board for three years.

Early Life and Artistic Beginnings

Anita Luttrell was born in Hominy, Oklahoma. This town is located within the Osage Nation lands. She is an enrolled member of the Osage Nation. She also has family ties to the Muscogee Nation. Anita grew up on her grandfather's land until she was about eight years old. Then, her family moved to Colorado. She lived in Colorado until she was 18.

Her father worked as a guide, outfitter, and welder. He supported their family. Anita's grandmother, on her mother's side, was a seamstress. She taught Anita how to sew when she was a young girl. Anita loved making clothes for her favorite doll. These early art activities made her love for art grow.

In third grade in Colorado, Anita learned how to make a fresco and a collage. Her teacher at that time loved art very much. This teacher helped Anita develop her own passion for art.

Education and Artistic Path

After finishing Wheat Ridge High School, Anita Fields went to the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). This school is in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She studied there from 1972 to 1974. Anita first planned to study painting. However, she discovered many other art forms there. These included video, multi-media, clay, and sculpture. This helped her explore different types of art.

Anita met her husband, Tom Fields, during a holiday in Colorado. Tom is also an artist, from the Muscogee Creek and Cherokee tribes. Anita left the institute to start a family with Tom. Before having children, she took classes at community centers and museums. One of these was the Osage Nation Museum. During this time, Anita learned traditional Osage finger weaving and ribbonwork.

Later, Tom got a job with the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technical Education. So, the family moved to Stillwater, Oklahoma. Anita then enrolled at Oklahoma State University. She earned a bachelor's degree in fine arts there. After getting her degree, she decided to become a full-time clay artist. She feels a strong connection to the earth through her clay work. She believes the earth holds memories of the people who lived there.

Exploring Anita Fields' Artwork

Early in her career, Anita Fields created small sculptures. She made a whole series of little clay boxes. Inside these boxes were even smaller clay figures. During this time, she often used a technique called terra sigillata. This gives clay a smooth, shiny surface.

Anita's artwork is usually fired in an electric kiln. After firing, she often smokes the pieces. She uses sawdust, straw, or leaves for this process. Sometimes, she adds tiny raku ware pieces to her unsmoked sculptures. These might be small elk teeth. Many of her works show figures. These figures represent spirituality. They do not show any specific person. Anita explains that she wants to show the spiritual strength of women. She wants to show how women fit into families. She also wants to show how they stay strong and loving, even through difficulties.

Clothing is a big inspiration for Anita's clay art. For her, clothes symbolize change and heritage. Some of her pieces are clay dresses. These dresses stand alone or are worn by female figures. Following this theme, Anita also made a series of clay parfleches. Parfleches are traditional Native American containers. She was interested in how these containers represented the culture of the past. She was fascinated by what people made to take care of themselves.

Other examples of her work include masks and platters. She also makes buckskin dresses and abstract figures. Her art often shows everyday home items. This is her way of honoring all women.

Anita was inspired by her son's graffiti art. She started adding distorted messages to her own work. For example, in her piece "Finding Our Way to the Earth," she used her grandmother's handwriting. This handwriting appears as background images. She said her grandmother kept detailed notes in calendars and notebooks. Anita admired her grandmother's beautiful handwriting.

Exhibitions and Displays

Anita Fields' art has been shown in many museums and exhibitions. Here are some of the places where her work has been displayed:

• Heard Museum
• National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum
• Museum of Art and Design
• Smithsonian Institution National Museum of the American Indian
• National Museum of Women in the Arts
• Sam Noble Museum, for the exhibition Fluent Generations: The Art of Anita, Tom, & Yatika Fields
• Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN
• Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN
• Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.
• Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK
• Hearts of our People: Native Women Artists, (2019), Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States.

Awards and Recognitions

Anita Fields has received several important awards for her art. In 2021, she was given a National Heritage Fellowship. This award comes from the National Endowment for the Arts. It is the highest honor the United States government gives for folk and traditional arts. Also in 2021, she received the Anonymous Was A Woman Award.