Dugan Aguilar facts for kids
Dugan Aguilar (1947–2018) was a talented Native American photographer. He was one of the first Native photographers to capture Native life in places like Yosemite and California through his own unique view. His amazing work has been shown in many big museums.
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Early Life and Heritage
Robert Dugan Aguilar was born on August 8, 1947, in Susanville, California. He grew up there. His mother's family was Maidu and Achomawi. His father was Northern Paiute from Nevada. Dugan also had some Irish family. He liked the name Dugan because it means "of dark complexion" in Gaelic.
Military Service
Dugan Aguilar's uncle, Leonard Lowry, was a very honored Native American war hero. Lowry served in the United States Army during and after World War II. He also fought in the Korean War.
Dugan Aguilar himself served in the Vietnam War for 13 months. When he came home, his Maidu community honored him as a warrior. They gave him a special award: a beaded golden eagle feather. His mother even turned his military uniform into a quilt.
Education and Photography
Aguilar finished college at California State University, Fresno in 1973. He then studied photography at several other universities. These included University of California, Santa Cruz and University of California, Davis.
Art Career and Inspiration
A famous photographer named Ansel Adams greatly inspired Dugan Aguilar. In 1973, Aguilar saw Adams' photos and decided he wanted to learn how to print pictures in a similar way. He even took a workshop with Ansel Adams in 1978.
After this, Aguilar chose to focus his career on photographing Native Americans in California and Nevada. He used special techniques, like planning his photos carefully before taking them. He also used "red filters" on his camera. These filters helped make the sky look dark and dramatic in his pictures. People say that Aguilar's photos were special because he truly understood the people he was photographing.
Passing Away
Dugan Aguilar passed away on October 6, 2018, in Elk Grove, California.
Exhibitions
Dugan Aguilar's photographs have been shown in many places, including:
- Ansel Adams Center for Photography, "Constructing Histories: Portraits of Native Americans", 1998
- Crocker Art Museum, 2001
- Maidu Interpretive Center, Roseville, California, "Honoring Hudessi", 2001
- Autry Museum of the American West, "Picturing the People", 2007–2008
- Grace Hudson Museum, 2008
- Oakland Museum of California, 2010
- de Saisset Museum, Santa Clara University, 2010
Books
Dugan Aguilar's photographs have also been featured in these books:
