R.C. Gorman (born 1931) was perhaps the leading Native American artist in the United States. Gorman's themes were universal and transcended the boundaries of the Navajo culture in which he was raised. Gorman's portraits of Navajo women were executed in a free-flowing style with vivid colors. He was sometimes called the "Picasso of American Indian artists."

Talented Ancestors

Rudolph Carl Gorman was born on July 26, 1931, in Chinle, Arizona, though some sources give his birth year as 1932. He grew up on the Navajo reservation in Chinle, Arizona, not far from Canyon de Chelly in the northeastern part of the state. The ancient home of the Anasazi and a place steeped in legend, power, and magic, the Chinle area served for centuries as a refuge for the Navajo from their Indian, Spanish, and Anglo enemies. The Navajo traditionally lived in earth-covered dwellings called hogans, while ekeing out a subsistence living...