Biography examines life, works of Indian artist Acee Blue Eagle
Biography examines life, works of Indian artist Acee Blue Eagle

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Published: December 23, 2007

A new book chronicles the life and achievements of one of Oklahoma's most famous American Indian artists, Acee Blue Eagle.

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"Lumhee Holot-tee: The Art and Life of Acee Blue Eagle” (Medicine Wheel Press, $24.95) was written by Tamara Liegerot Elder, an American Indian curator and historian who lives in Oklahoma. Lumhee Holot-tee was Blue Eagle's Creek-Pawnee name.

Blue Eagle was born the year Oklahoma became a state. The book tells of his years in Indian boarding schools and his career as a teacher at Bacone College. He was a contemporary of the Kiowa Five artists and did much to promote American Indian art.

He was the first American Indian artist to embark upon a solo career. He traveled worldwide, displaying his works. Blue Eagle believed he was predestined to document and preserve the American Indian way of life.

For readers who are intrigued with the history of American Indian art, the author does an excellent job of tracing Blue Eagle's years as a muralist in President Franklin Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration program, the artist's friendship with German artist Winhold Reiss and Blue Eagle's work with close friends such as Oscar Jacobson, Thomas Gilcrease, Angie Debo, TeAta Fisher, Woody Crumbo and Charles Banks Wilson.

In addition to the history of art, the book provides insight into Blue Eagle's military service, including his near-death experience aboard a B-17 bomber during World War II.

A bit of romance is included with stories of Blue Eagle's relationship with Devi Dja, a famous Balinese dancer who appeared in several 1940s Hollywood movies.

Before his death in 1959, Blue Eagle hosted a children's television program in Tulsa and spent his final years doing what he could to preserve Indian heritage and record Indian life.

To recognize Blue Eagle's prowess in other arts, the author includes selected poems written by and for the internationally known artist.

— Bob Burke