PONCA CITY - A 20-foot statue will depict a famous Ponca Indian chief, showing him standing in fine tribal regalia, his right hand outstretched as he talks with his Creator.
A New Mexico artist was selected from five finalists to sculpt the larger-than-life bronze of Standing Bear, it was announced Saturday night in Ponca City. The finalists were chosen from a field of 55 artists.
Oreland C. Joe, a Southern Ute/Navajo from Kirtland, N.M., said in a statement he accompanied with his 18-inch model that he wanted to show Standing Bear leading his people "with the beliefs of heart. " "I envision him as a man who loved the traditional way of Ponca life but yet had to live in a changing country," Joe said.
Genevieve Pollak, chairwoman of the Ponca tribe's business committee, said the Standing Bear monument is a symbol of cooperation between people "regardless of what color our skins are. " Selecting a sculptor is an important step because it indicates to many members of the tribe that the monument to Standing Bear will become a reality, she said.
"If you stop to think, so many times our people have been promised something that has never been brought to light," Pollack said. "Right now, they've heard about this statue since we started talking about it (two years ago). They see it materializing, that's going to play a big factor in accepting that these people kept their word. " The statue will not just honor Standing Bear but all Indians and all people in their struggle for dignity and equality, organizers of the project say. A main objective is to show the struggle for human rights of all Indians.
The monument marks the start of a massive project that is planned to include a museum, an Indian village and a trading post to explain American Indian culture. It will be placed on a 63-acre tract near the intersection of U.S. 60 and U.S. 177 on the south side of Ponca City.
Other plans for Standing Bear Native American Memorial Park include building a cultural center and museum that will include a hall of fame and a learning center that would feature an Indian trading post.
A memorial sculpture garden will feature the busts and a brief history of a famous chief of all the 39 tribes in Oklahoma. The complex will take several years to complete.
The Standing Bear statue should be seen easily by many Ponca schoolchildren as they are bused to Ponca City from the tribal community of White Eagle, about five miles south of town.
Pollack said the statue will give members of her tribe, especially the youth, "some pride in themselves as Native Americans. I want them to have that thought that, 'It's OK to be an Indian. I'm proud to be an Indian. " For two years, members of the Ponca tribe and Ponca City community have worked to form Native American Foundation Inc., to tell the story of American Indian heritage and culture. The land for the park was bought last year and was dedicated last October.
"We think this is a very big step in trying to have a better understanding of the Native American culture and traditions," said Carl Renfro, chairman of the Native American Memorial Committee.
Committee members last year selected Standing Bear to be the subject of the park's centerpiece because he sued the federal government in the 1870s to have American Indians recognized as individuals and human beings.
"He was the first one to really win a victory for the Native Americans in the courtroom rather than the battlefield," Renfro said.
Announcement of Joe as the winning sculptor for the Standing Bear monument was made during the second annual Standing Bear celebration.
Plans call for Joe to start work on the statue at his studio, with the work to be completed by October 1996 when the statue will be unveiled at the park.
At the same time, work will start on building a plaza area around the statue, Renfro said. Estimated cost for the plaza and monument is about $500,000. Joe's statue shows Standing Bear standing on a hill. He is wrapped in a blanket, an eagle feather fan resting in one arm as his other hand is outstretched.
Joe, who used photographs and drawings for his interpretation, shows Standing Bear with an eagle feather in his long hair and wearing a pair of loop earrings, a bead necklace, a presidential medal he received and a large bear-claw necklace.
"It's truly going to be magnificent," Renfro said. The statue will face the east, overlooking the Arkansas River valley to denote a custom of American Indians to look toward the sunrise to start a day.
A panel of five American Indian artists and historians selected Joe's model for the project. The other four finalists were Denny Haskew of Loveland, Colo.; Larry Ludtke of Houston; Dave McGary of Ruidoso, N.M.; and Jo Saylors of Ponca City.
Saylors sculpted Ponca City's centennial statue of a cowboy jumping off a horse to stake a claim during the 1893 Cherokee Strip Land Run. Her model had Standing Bear enclosed by a "circle of life" which showed the great seals of the six area tribes - Ponca, Otoe-Missouria, Pawnee, Kaw, Tonkawa and Osage.
A New Mexico artist was selected from five finalists to sculpt the larger-than-life bronze of Standing Bear, it was announced Saturday night in Ponca City. The finalists were chosen from a field of 55 artists.
Oreland C. Joe, a Southern Ute/Navajo from Kirtland, N.M., said in a statement he accompanied with his 18-inch model that he wanted to show Standing Bear leading his people "with the beliefs of heart. " "I envision him as a man who loved the traditional way of Ponca life but yet had to live in a changing country," Joe said.
Genevieve Pollak, chairwoman of the Ponca tribe's business committee, said the Standing Bear monument is a symbol of cooperation between people "regardless of what color our skins are. " Selecting a sculptor is an important step because it indicates to many members of the tribe that the monument to Standing Bear will become a reality, she said.
"If you stop to think, so many times our people have been promised something that has never been brought to light," Pollack said. "Right now, they've heard about this statue since we started talking about it (two years ago). They see it materializing, that's going to play a big factor in accepting that these people kept their word. " The statue will not just honor Standing Bear but all Indians and all people in their struggle for dignity and equality, organizers of the project say. A main objective is to show the struggle for human rights of all Indians.
The monument marks the start of a massive project that is planned to include a museum, an Indian village and a trading post to explain American Indian culture. It will be placed on a 63-acre tract near the intersection of U.S. 60 and U.S. 177 on the south side of Ponca City.
Other plans for Standing Bear Native American Memorial Park include building a cultural center and museum that will include a hall of fame and a learning center that would feature an Indian trading post.
A memorial sculpture garden will feature the busts and a brief history of a famous chief of all the 39 tribes in Oklahoma. The complex will take several years to complete.
The Standing Bear statue should be seen easily by many Ponca schoolchildren as they are bused to Ponca City from the tribal community of White Eagle, about five miles south of town.
Pollack said the statue will give members of her tribe, especially the youth, "some pride in themselves as Native Americans. I want them to have that thought that, 'It's OK to be an Indian. I'm proud to be an Indian. " For two years, members of the Ponca tribe and Ponca City community have worked to form Native American Foundation Inc., to tell the story of American Indian heritage and culture. The land for the park was bought last year and was dedicated last October.
"We think this is a very big step in trying to have a better understanding of the Native American culture and traditions," said Carl Renfro, chairman of the Native American Memorial Committee.
Committee members last year selected Standing Bear to be the subject of the park's centerpiece because he sued the federal government in the 1870s to have American Indians recognized as individuals and human beings.
"He was the first one to really win a victory for the Native Americans in the courtroom rather than the battlefield," Renfro said.
Announcement of Joe as the winning sculptor for the Standing Bear monument was made during the second annual Standing Bear celebration.
Plans call for Joe to start work on the statue at his studio, with the work to be completed by October 1996 when the statue will be unveiled at the park.
At the same time, work will start on building a plaza area around the statue, Renfro said. Estimated cost for the plaza and monument is about $500,000. Joe's statue shows Standing Bear standing on a hill. He is wrapped in a blanket, an eagle feather fan resting in one arm as his other hand is outstretched.
Joe, who used photographs and drawings for his interpretation, shows Standing Bear with an eagle feather in his long hair and wearing a pair of loop earrings, a bead necklace, a presidential medal he received and a large bear-claw necklace.
"It's truly going to be magnificent," Renfro said. The statue will face the east, overlooking the Arkansas River valley to denote a custom of American Indians to look toward the sunrise to start a day.
A panel of five American Indian artists and historians selected Joe's model for the project. The other four finalists were Denny Haskew of Loveland, Colo.; Larry Ludtke of Houston; Dave McGary of Ruidoso, N.M.; and Jo Saylors of Ponca City.
Saylors sculpted Ponca City's centennial statue of a cowboy jumping off a horse to stake a claim during the 1893 Cherokee Strip Land Run. Her model had Standing Bear enclosed by a "circle of life" which showed the great seals of the six area tribes - Ponca, Otoe-Missouria, Pawnee, Kaw, Tonkawa and Osage.