STILL - Stephen Ellis Greer Paintings - Duke Hospital Concourse

Stan Allen, in the spring of 1999, asked me if I would be interested in attending a Pow Wow with him. I did attend, and when I saw and heard North Carolina Native Americans, in full regalia, making their grand entry into the ceremonial circle I knew I would record that experience in paint. I attended numerous Pow Wows with Stan, and each time became more committed to creating this collection. The work in this exhibit is inspired by native American regalia and dance, which in good measure are reborn from history, myth and legend. Candid sketches, photographs, and memories of the Pow Wows of the Haliwa-Saponi, Lumbee, Waccamaw-Siouan, and Occaneechi-Saponi tribes provide the visual references in creating this body of work. These paintings document the resurgence of tribal identity by the indigenous peoples of eastern North Carolina. For me, they whisper the simple yet profound message that, though Native Americans have endured some of the worst that history could mete out, they have emerged as vibrant and beautiful as ever.

They are here...STILL