Ernest Spybuck, also known as Mathkacea or Mahthela, was an Absentee Shawnee artist whose work provides a valuable glimpse into the life and culture of his people during a period of significant transition. Born in January 1883 and passing away in 1949, Spybuck, sometimes spelled Earnest, lived his entire life in what is now Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, leaving behind a legacy of artwork that serves as both an artistic expression and a historical record. His unique style and dedication to portraying scenes of contemporary tribal life have cemented his place as an important figure in Native American art history. This article delves into the life, art, and legacy of Ernest Spybuck.
Early Life and Background
Ernest Spybuck was born on the Potawatomi-Shawnee Reservation near Tecumseh, Oklahoma. His lineage traced back to the White Turkey Band of the Absentee Shawnee, belonging to the Rabbit clan. His parents, Peahchepeahso and John Spybuck, provided him with a deep connection to his Shawnee heritage, a connection that would profoundly influence his artistic endeavors.
Even from a young age, Spybuck displayed an innate artistic talent. By the age of six, he was already experimenting with drawing and painting. However, despite his early inclination towards art, Spybuck’s life took a practical turn, and he spent the majority of his adult years as a farmer. Farming remained his primary source of income as late as 1938, highlighting the realities of life for many Native Americans during that era.
Spybuck’s formal education was limited. He attended the Boarding School in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and later the Sacred Heart Mission in south-central Oklahoma. However, his education never progressed beyond the McGuffey’s Third Reader. For the most part, Spybuck was a self-taught artist, developing his unique style through observation, experience, and a deep understanding of his cultural heritage.
Anecdotes from his time at the Shawnee Boarding School reveal the depth of his artistic passion. According to one of his teachers, the young Spybuck was consumed by his art, dedicating all his time to drawing and painting scenes drawn from his everyday life.
At the age of 19, Spybuck married his wife, Anna. Together, they built a family, raising three children while navigating the challenges and changes facing the Absentee Shawnee Nation.
Community Involvement and Spiritual Leadership
Beyond his artistic pursuits and agricultural endeavors, Ernest Spybuck was deeply involved in the Absentee Shawnee Nation. He belonged to a large and influential family and was an active member of the community. His commitment to his people led him to become a Peyote leader when the Native American Church was first adopted by the Shawnee people. This role reflected his spiritual depth and his desire to preserve and promote the cultural and religious practices of his community.
Spybuck remained a vital part of his community until his death in 1949 at the age of 66. He was laid to rest in a family plot near his home on Indian allotment land, a testament to his deep connection to the land and his people.
The Art of Ernest Spybuck: A Blend of Ethnography and Individuality
Ernest Spybuck’s artistic career took a significant turn when he came under the patronage of anthropologist M. R. Harrington. Harrington recognized Spybuck’s talent and his ability to depict scenes of contemporary tribal life with remarkable accuracy. He saw the potential for Spybuck’s work to contribute to ethnographic research on the Shawnee and Delaware tribes.
Harrington, who was collecting specimens and conducting research for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, was introduced to Spybuck through his assistant. He was immediately impressed by the young artist’s "unsophisticated" drawings and the detailed accuracy with which he depicted clothing, tools, and other cultural elements.
Recognizing the value of Spybuck’s unique perspective, Harrington commissioned him to create watercolors depicting ceremonies and social life of the tribes in the area. This patronage provided Spybuck with both financial support and a platform for his art to reach a wider audience.
Spybuck produced watercolors for Harrington through 1921. Harrington used some of these works in monographs published by the Heye Foundation. He also interviewed Spybuck extensively for a work on the Shawnee that was never published. However, Harrington deposited his notes and Spybuck’s paintings with the Museum of the American Indian, now part of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, ensuring their preservation for future generations.
While Harrington’s patronage undoubtedly influenced Spybuck’s career, some critics argue that Spybuck was already deeply committed to depicting daily reservation life before their meeting. They suggest that his art matured alongside his involvement with his local community, including his participation in the social activities and ceremonies that interested ethnographers.
According to accounts, Spybuck initially preferred painting cowboys, livestock, and range scenes. However, under Harrington’s guidance, his style evolved, particularly in his choice of subjects and the way he painted them.
Spybuck’s style is often described as naive and representational. His paintings feature local scenes of ceremonies, games, social gatherings, and home life, all rendered with a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of his subject matter. His style recalls Plains flatstyle representative art, which often identified individuals by depicting details of dress and accoutrement. However, Spybuck took this representational style in a new direction, creating a unique artistic voice that was distinctly his own.
His "documentary realism" is characterized by meticulous attention to dress, accouterments, and gesture, set in a simplified three-dimensional setting with well-defined foreground and background. He developed unique techniques, such as painting a cross-section "window" in a tipi or lodge to show the activity inside while also depicting the landscape and time of day outside. This innovative approach allowed him to provide a comprehensive view of his subject matter, blending the interior and exterior worlds in a single image.
While Spybuck’s style might be considered naive art in Western European terms, his work differs from that of most naive artists due to the influence of ethnographic patronage, which guided his choice of details, and the infusion of a sense of humor and personality. His scenes often provide subtle hints of the attitudes and personalities of individual people and include whimsical details on the periphery that contrast with the central activities.
Like Harrington, many recognize that Spybuck possessed a remarkable talent, but it often served a practical purpose in the domain of ethnography. His paintings served as illustrations for numerous anthropological writings, contributing to a broader understanding of Shawnee culture.
Some scholars have termed this practice autoethnography, in which the artist or writer assimilates the techniques of ethnographer to create representations of themselves and their cultures, with the implication of an asymmetrical power relationship between the ethnographer patron and the Native artist. This perspective highlights the complex dynamics between Native artists and the researchers who sought to document their cultures.
Others view Spybuck as an Indian artist who was a recorder and preserver of traditional practices in the midst of social change. His art served as a means of documenting and celebrating Shawnee culture during a period of rapid assimilation and cultural loss.
During Ernest Spybuck’s lifetime, works by Native American artists were just beginning to be exhibited as art rather than as ethnographic specimens. His work played a crucial role in this shift, helping to elevate Native American art to a position of greater recognition and respect.
In addition to having his art published in many books on American Indian cultures, several museums purchased his work for their collections. He was commissioned to produce murals for the Creek Indian Council House and Museum in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, and at the Oklahoma Historical Society Museum in Oklahoma City. During his life, his work was exhibited at the Museum of the American Indian in New York City and at the American Indian Exposition and Congress in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Collections of Ernest Spybuck Art
Today, collections of Ernest Spybuck’s art can be found in several prominent museums and institutions, including:
- The Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian
- The Creek Indian Council House and Museum
- The Oklahoma Historical Society Museum
These collections serve as a testament to Spybuck’s enduring legacy and provide invaluable insights into the life and culture of the Absentee Shawnee Nation. His art continues to inspire and educate, ensuring that his unique perspective and artistic vision are preserved for future generations. Ernest Spybuck left a remarkable mark on the art world and on the understanding of Native American life in the early 20th century.