Becoming Mary Sully: Toward an American Indian Abstract

Philip J. Deloria examines the art and life of Dakota Sioux artist Mary Sully (1896-1963), a previously unknown Indigenous modernist who created abstract portraits and triptychs during the Great Depression era. The book features over 200 reproductions of Sully's distinctive works, which combined Native American art traditions with Euro-American modernist techniques. The author, who is Sully's great-nephew, reconstructs her biography through archival research and family history, placing her work in the context of both Native American art movements and mainstream modernism of the early 20th century. Sully's artistic career intersected with federal Indian policy, the development of anthropology, and the rise of Native American political and cultural activism. This study positions Sully's artwork as a bridge between multiple worlds - Indigenous and Euro-American, traditional and modern, personal and political. Through analysis of her unique aesthetic approach, Deloria explores broader questions about American Indian identity, modernist art practices, and the complex cultural landscape of mid-century America.

Readers highlight the book's exploration of a little-known Dakota artist's life and work, with appreciation for how it connects Sully's art to broader Indigenous modernist movements. Liked: - Detailed visual analysis of Sully's portraiture techniques - Connection of personal biography to larger cultural context - Research depth into Dakota/Sioux history - Quality of art reproductions in the book Disliked: - Dense academic writing style that some found hard to follow - Limited information about Sully's personal life - High price point for a specialized art history text Ratings: Goodreads: 4.5/5 (8 ratings) Amazon: Not enough reviews for rating Notable Review Quotes: "Important recovery work of an Indigenous artist who deserves wider recognition" - Goodreads user "Valuable contribution to Native American art history but requires patience with academic prose" - Art History reviewer The book has limited review data available online due to its academic nature and specialized subject matter.

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🎨 Mary Sully created over 134 abstract portrait sets during the Great Depression, yet her work remained largely unknown until decades after her death in 1963. 🏔️ Philip J. Deloria, the author, is Mary Sully's great-nephew and the first Native American professor to receive tenure at Harvard University. 🖼️ Sully's distinctive artistic style combined Dakota aesthetic traditions with Art Deco influences, creating three-panel portraits that explored both individual identity and broader cultural themes. 👥 Though she was the great-granddaughter of famous frontier painter Thomas Sully, Mary Sully worked in isolation from the mainstream art world and never exhibited her work during her lifetime. 🗯️ The book explores how Sully's artwork challenged both Native American artistic stereotypes and modernist assumptions about "primitive" art, creating a unique visual language that bridged multiple cultural worlds.