Wa-Wa Chaw (Native American, 1888-1972), Rincon Band Luiseno, oil on board entitled "Indian Family Life", ca. 1960 CE. Delineated in a bold expressionist folk art style, a beautiful oil painting depicting a Native American family engaged in a loving embrace by Bonita Wa Wa Clachaw Nunez (also known as Wa Wa Chaw/ Wa Wa Calac Chaw), signed in the upper left corner. The family's closeness is depicted both with a physical as well an emotional bond. Note how the parents' visages are almost united - to the degree that they seem so share a hairline - as they gaze upon their sleepy child with adoration. The painting is housed in a charming hand-made and painted black and gold wood frame. Size: painting measures 9.625" L x 9.5" W (24.4 cm x 24.1 cm); 13.25" L x 13.125" W (33.7 cm x 33.3 cm) including frame

Wa Wa Chaw was a prolific artist and sold her paintings in Greenwich Village, New York City; however, she was just as interested in sharing her political voice and speaking out to attain equality for Native American women. Wawa Calac Chaw, meaning "Keep from the Water," was a Native American artist, writer, and lecturer about Native American and feminist topics. Born on December 25, 1888 at Valley Center in the Tule River area of California, Chaw belonged to the Rincon division of the Luiseno tribe; however, during infancy she was taken by Dr. Cornelius Duggan and his sister Mary Duggan, both of New York, to protect her health. The Duggans then raised her as their own. An artistic prodigy, Chaw's talent was initially recognized when she created medical and scientific sketches of early radium and cancer experiments pertaining to the work of Pierre and Marie Curie. She developed into a passionate activist representing Native American and feminist causes, and even gave a talk at a meeting sponsored by Carrie Chapman Catt at the Astor Hotel while only a teenager.

A portrait of a woman by Wa Wa Chaw delineated in a similar style resides in the National Museum of the American Indian (catalog number 25/1164).

For further insight to the life and works of this remarkable artist/political activist, read "Spirit Woman: The Diaries and Paintings of Bonita Wa Wa Calachaw Nunez" edited by Stan Steiner, Harper and Row, 1990. This book is a diary of Bonita Wa Wa Calachaw Nunez (her married name as she married a Puerto Rican man named Manuel Carmonia-Nunez - "son of the last Spanish Lieutenant" and organizer for the Cigar workers' Union) and tells of the self-taught artist's endeavors in feminism and Native American rights prior to her death at the age of 84.

Provenance: private Salter collection, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

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#125684

Small loss to paint on blanket around the baby's neck. Painting is otherwise very good and signature in upper left corner is legible. Frame shows minor wear and a few old losses, but is still very much intact and serviceable. Gallery paper on verso shows age and minor losses but the title and identification written in pencil, "Indian Family Life Painted By Wa Wa Chaw" is still legible. There is also a lovely printed photograph of the artist in Native American clothing reading a book.