Cigar Store Indian 1941

Alvin Gully crafted this ‘Cigar Store Indian’ in 1941, capturing a figure laden with symbolic weight. These figures, ubiquitous at one time, were meant to signal the sale of tobacco, but they carry a complex, often contradictory narrative. Consider the feather headdress: a symbol of honor and spiritual connection, here reduced to a mere commercial emblem. This motif of the feathered figure is not unique, one can trace it back to ancient cultures, where feathers often signified divine status, freedom, and power. Yet, here, the figure is bound, literally, to the earth as a carved object. The power of the image lies in this tension, this unresolved dialogue between its original intent and its transformed meaning. How does this contrast resonate within our collective memory? Perhaps it speaks to the subconscious desire to connect with a lost world, or perhaps it is a manifestation of deeper anxieties.