Allan Houser Apache Crown Dance Serigraph, Signed 1952

A serigraph by Allan Houser (Haozous, 1914–1994), the Fort Sill Chiricahua Apache artist regarded as a foundational figure in twentieth-century Native American fine art. The composition depicts an Apache Crown Dance — also called the Gaan or Mountain Spirit Dance — with two female figures in shawls and tiered skirts standing center behind a campfire, flanked symmetrically by two Gaan dancers in characteristic black body paint with white zigzag designs, fringed yellow kilts, and the tall painted wooden crown headdresses that give the ceremony its name. The dancers brandish wands, ribbons trailing from their arms in arcs of motion. Printed on a warm gray-toned paper that lets the figures float in ceremonial space.

Signed lower right in red-orange ink with the copyright mark and printed name ALLAN HOUSER and the date 52. The Crown Dance is among Houser's signature ceremonial subjects, returned to throughout his career and central to his identity as a Chiricahua artist. He studied under Dorothy Dunn at the Santa Fe Indian School and went on to receive the National Medal of Arts in 1992, two years before his death. Presented framed and matted behind glass in a black wood frame.

Allan Houser was born in 1914 near Apache, Oklahoma, the first child of his Chiricahua Apache parents born outside of captivity following the family's release from prisoner-of-war status. He trained at the Santa Fe Indian School under Dorothy Dunn in the 1930s and went on to become a painter, sculptor, and educator whose work is held by the Smithsonian, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Heard Museum, and the U.S. Capitol. He taught at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe and mentored a generation of Native artists. He received the National Medal of Arts in 1992, two years before his death. His work carries strong regional significance in the New Mexico and southern Arizona market.

Artist name, and date "52" in the artist's characteristic red-orange ink — consistent with authorized Houser serigraph editions dated to a 1952 composition. The copyright stamp rather than a hand-applied signature is standard for authorized Houser print editions.

CONDITION

Good. The serigraph presents with strong color saturation and no foxing, fading, or tears to the image area. Minor scuffing to the black wood frame consistent with handling; no remarkable damage. Not examined out of frame.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Medium: Serigraph (screen print) on toned paper
• Artist: Allan Houser (Haozous), Chiricahua Apache, 1914–1994
• Signature: Printed copyright stamp with artist name and date "52," lower right
• Subject: Apache Crown Dance (Gaan / Mountain Spirit Dance)
• Overall (framed): 23¼" H × 29" W × ½" D
• Visible Image: 12¾" × 19¾"
• Presentation: Framed and matted behind glass; black wood frame