Painting Indians

Before Columbus discovered America in 1492, the indigenous population of North American is estimated to have been around five million. The Europeans brought with them diseases previously unknown on the continent, including small pox. As part of their preordained quest of colonization, they took control of the Indians, destroying the delicate balance of their economy and traditions, often quite violently. The end result of this was that, while the white immigrant population grew from zero to 75 million by the end of the 18th Century, the native population had dwindled to a mere quarter of a million.

The indigenous people, divided among many diverse tribes, lived in harmony with nature and, in many cases, maintained a strong animosity with their neighboring tribes, which kept their warrior spirit ever alive.

The American colonizers encountered first hand this fierce warrior spirit when they invaded their lands with complete disregard for their way of life. Later, it was to be the United States Army whose members bore the brunt of the terror and hatred of these ‘savages’ who confronted them with nothing to gain and everything to lose.

Finally, the implacable will of the white man was imposed upon them. Of course, there were exceptions like the Navaho nation who, in recent years, have prospered and even increased the limits of their reserve through astute commercial deals. The remainder of the tribes were doomed to extinction or confinement on reservations, where their independent way of life has been almost forgotten.

The current publication is a complete guide to painting miniature North-American Indians, with their various skin tones, war paints, weaponry and in fact everything that has made this people stand out as icons deserving admiration and the greatest respect in our time.