Real Indians: Portraits of Contemporary Native Americans and America's Tribal Colleges

In 2000, photographer Andrea Modica, well-known for her three previous monographs—Treadwell (Cat# CI087H), Minor League, and Human Being (Cat# TR080H)—was commissioned by the American Indian College Fund to create a body of portraits of contemporary Native Americans associated with America's Tribal Colleges. Working strictly in b&w, Modica brings to each portrait session an intensity balanced by the ponderousness of her view camera. Gathered together here under the sponsorship of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, her images present the faces of 'real indians'—individuals who live and breathe as tribal members in contemporary America. The introduction by noted native author Sherman Alexie is both touching and hilarious for it's forthrightness. "I do admit to having a foot fetish...but I'm disappointed in the overall paucity of bare indigenous feet in this book. I thought Indians were supposed to be barefoot and savage. I guess that's one stereotype broken by Real Indians."