Stephen Mopope, Kiowa Tribe Painter

Stephen Mopope broke out of the Kiowa tradition of painting by including more figures in his narrative paintings. His work is represented in Kiowa Art and his paintings have been exhibited all over the world. His commissions include murals for the United States Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. (I938), as well as works sponsored by the Works Progress Administration and the Public Works Administration. Mopope's many awards include a Certificateof Appreciation by the Indian Arts and Crafts Board, United States Department of the Interior.

Stephen Mopope (1898-1974) Qued Koi - Painted Robe was born and raised on the Kiowa Reservation, Indian Territory, later to become Oklahoma. He was primarily a painter and dancer most of his life.

"Mopope's grandfather was a Spanish captive, kidnapped by the Kiowas from a wagon train crossing the prairie and reared by Chief Many Bears. On the Kiowa side he was a descendant of Appiatan, a noted Kiowa warrior. His granduncles were Silverhorn (Haungooah) and Hakok. They found him drawing designs in the sand and decided to teach him how to paint on tanned skins in the old Kiowa way. Mopope's childhood education by his grandmother was in the Kiowa tradition. [He also studied with Susie Peters of the Kiowa Agency in Anadarko, Oklahoma, and at the University of Oklahoma, Norman, in the late 1920s]. He is one of the original *Kiowa Five [the "Five Kiowas" at the University of Oklahoma] and was primarily a painter and dancer most of his life."  -Snodgrass, American Indian Painters 1968.

*The Kiowa Six, previously known as the Kiowa Five, is a group of six Kiowa artists from Oklahoma in the early 20th century. They were Spencer Asah, James Auchiah, Jack Hokeah, Stephen Mopope, Lois Smoky, and Monroe Tsatoke. -Wikipedia

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Relative Links: Native American paintings; Kiowa Nation; Spencer Asah; Jack Hokeah; Lois Smoky; The KIOWA SIX, Native American Painting Group