Harrison Begay (1914-2012)
Harrison Begay was a celebrated American Navajo painter, best known for his prints and watercolors of peaceful scenes of Navajo life and culture. He was the last surviving student of Dorothy Dunn at the Santa Fe Indian School. After returning from the service, Began began his professional painting career in 1947 and painted until recently. He created prints and paintings in tempera, watercolor and acrylics that depict Navajo Indian figures and other southwest scenes. His work is described as quiet and peaceful in tone. Begay won two grand awards at the Gallup Inter-Tribal Ceremonial and has been a consistent winner at state and tribal fairs. In 1954, he was awarded the French Ordre des Palmes Académiques. In 1995, he was awarded the Native American Masters Award by the Heard Museum. In 2003, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts, the organizers of the annual Santa Fe Indian Market.
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