The Unexploited Identity is a portrait of my dad, Raymond Holtsoi. In it, he is wearing a headpiece I created using a “Wild West”-themed toy set. The toy set consists of stereotypical “cowboy and Indian” characters commonly seen in film, TV shows, fashion and art.
Joseph Roy (J. R.) Willis is known for his landscape and Indigenous-themed paintings. The Indigenous people featured in Kit Carson at Cañon de Chelly are supposed to be Diné, but are not well-represented or well-researched based on their apparel.
In my painting the “Wild West” toys are melted and disfigured. This choice symbolizes how Indigenous people, Indigenous culture, and the Indigenous experience are exploited and used for gain and profit. My dad’s portrait is dominant within the painting. He’s the truth, he’s familiar, he’s relatable, he’s universal, he’s who I know and identify with. It is dangerous when Indigenous people, Indigenous culture, and the Indigenous experience are used for production, inclusion, mascots, costumes, etc. because we are no longer seen as human beings. Today it is no longer a discussion of cultural appropriation, but racial social justice.
Clint Holtsoi (they/them) is Diné and a visual artist. Their work is influenced by their identity, experience, culture, family bonds, imagination, curiosity, and exploration.
Joseph Roy (J. R.) Willis
Untitled (Kit Carson at Cañon de Chelly)
1935-1936
Oil on panel
72” W x 36” H
Commissioned by the Gallup schools through the Public Works of Art Project.
Clint Holtsoi
The Unexploited Identity
2018
Oil on canvas
18″ W x 23 ¾” H
Audio description for individuals with low vision. Audio descriptions produced by Art Beyond Sight.
This is an oil painting on canvas by Clint Holtsoi titled The Unexpected Identity, measuring 18 inches wide and just under two feet tall. For more about this painting style and the history of this painting, read the “About this Artwork” section above.
The painting presents a portrait of the artist’s father, shown in the painting as an older Diné or Navajo man with brown skin. Only his head and shoulders are visible. His grey-ish black hair is parted in the middle, he wears large square-shaped, silver frame glasses with black-topped rims, and a simple sky-blue t-shirt. The background of the painting is solid yellow, creating a contrast to the subject in the foreground.
The man’s body is facing us and positioned leaning slightly to the left side of the canvas, with his face directed toward the opposite side of the canvas. His gaze seems to extend beyond the edge of the painting, as though he is looking at something out of view. His right hand is raised, with his forefinger gently touching his chin, as if in a thoughtful pose.
On his head, he wears a distinctive headband made of small, brown figurines fused together in an arching line, with gaps and spaces between them. While we cannot tell from the painting, the artist explains that the headband is made of melted plastic “wild west”-themed toys. The small figurines include various animals, such as a bull with horns, and what appears to be a buffalo or a horse, as well as stylized depictions of Indigenous people, one crouching and the legs of a person standing. The figures are brown, and partially painted with dabs of red, green, and blue. The headband stands in stark contrast to the yellow background behind him, drawing attention with its unusual design.
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Gallup and McKinley County are situated on the ancestral and current homelands of the Diné and Ashiwi peoples.
Gallup’s New Deal art collection consists of over 120 objects created, purchased, or donated from 1933 to 1942 through New Deal federal art programs administered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to support artists during the Great Depression.
The Gallup New Deal Art Virtual Museum features three types of exhibits, combining traditional and non-traditional approaches to illuminate academic, creative, and individual understandings.
Gallup’s New Deal art collection includes works by a demographically, professionally, and stylistically diverse group of named and unnamed artists.
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