Oldal 100 [100]
Figure 2. Bill Powless, "Fear of Wet Feathers’, drawing, 1985, Tribal Vision, n.d.
http://www.tribalvisiondance.com/p/original-artwork-by-bill-powless.html.
By permission of artist.
The third drawing by Powless is titled Urban Indian Lost in the Woods (1995)
(see Figure 3). This is a sardonic rendering of “Indians don’t get lost in the
woods”. But the urban Indian has lost its touch with nature, tradition, heritage,
and culture so he cannot find his way in the woods, which may metaphorically
represent life itself. The drawing depicts a Native with the stereotypical long¬
ish black hair, strong male facial features, with only the feather missing, which
would visually enforce his Indigenous heritage; he wears a white shirt which
is torn, but his entire appearance shows signs of wear and neglect; he has
smaller cuts on his fingers and face. The trees look like the iron bars of a
prison, from which he is desperately trying to escape. The futility of his efforts
is visible on his face and bleeding fingers. The Indian may represent the mis¬
ery and hopelessness of Indigenous people in general, which is a consequence
of acculturation, residential schools, and, in end effect, of white colonization.
The work is a grim rendering of anguish and loss, which is made bitingly clear
by the facial features of the man showing suffering, misery, loss and even
panic. The unmistakable sarcasm and bitter humour are evident in the work,
but it is directed perhaps not so much at the non-Native, but rather at Indig¬
enous people. His aim is to raise awareness and strengthen Indigenous
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