Carm Little Turtle, Earth Man Getting Breath Less
Carm Little Turtle
1952-2017
Apache / Tarahumara
Date
2003
Medium Specific
Black and white photo sepia with oils
Classification
Photograph
Accession Number
2009.20.10.127
Credit
Gift of the Artist
Memo / Artist Statement
In my work, composition, balance in the painted surface and aesthetics are more important than the articulation of meaning. If an image succeeds in making a statement, it's exciting. In order to keep a narrative piece open ended, I commonly shoot images so that the models' faces are not seen. Viewers are allowed to make their own interpretation. I try not to capitalize on the spiritualism of my heritage by giving the impression that I have, through images, a monopoly on the spirit world, it deals with sex , food, and money, the politics between men and women, the human spirit, the need to communicate, and the importance of humor in that quest.
I pose my models against unobtrusive background, or the rugged terrain of Northern Arizona, or the exquisite mountains and clouds of New Mexico because, beauteous as these are by themselves, they also act as metaphors of the politics between men and women. I stage some scenes with the models' faces facing away, to suggest the dreamy poems of inner reflection or solitary journeys. I selectively apply oil paint on black and white sepia toned photographs to heighten the visual experience. The props and costumes in my work are icons in my private symbolism. I'm not interested in the prettified mythology that Euroamerican culture glues to indigenous people.
Little Turtle was born in 1952 and is of Apache/Tarahumara and Mexican heritage. My mother was an artist and proved to be a major influence on my work. My earliest memories are of paints and the painted surface. My own attempts to blur the boundaries between photography and painting are the result of that influence. She graduated from Navajo Community College in Tsaile, Arizona ,Navajo Nation in 1978. She attended University of New Mexico in Albuquerque where Barbara De Geneveive was her photography instructor. She resides in Bosque Farms, New Mexico in a renovated New Deal 1930 loft, a state historical building near the Rio Grande and cottonwood trees and her half quarter horse and Mustang Sierra.
I pose my models against unobtrusive background, or the rugged terrain of Northern Arizona, or the exquisite mountains and clouds of New Mexico because, beauteous as these are by themselves, they also act as metaphors of the politics between men and women. I stage some scenes with the models' faces facing away, to suggest the dreamy poems of inner reflection or solitary journeys. I selectively apply oil paint on black and white sepia toned photographs to heighten the visual experience. The props and costumes in my work are icons in my private symbolism. I'm not interested in the prettified mythology that Euroamerican culture glues to indigenous people.
Little Turtle was born in 1952 and is of Apache/Tarahumara and Mexican heritage. My mother was an artist and proved to be a major influence on my work. My earliest memories are of paints and the painted surface. My own attempts to blur the boundaries between photography and painting are the result of that influence. She graduated from Navajo Community College in Tsaile, Arizona ,Navajo Nation in 1978. She attended University of New Mexico in Albuquerque where Barbara De Geneveive was her photography instructor. She resides in Bosque Farms, New Mexico in a renovated New Deal 1930 loft, a state historical building near the Rio Grande and cottonwood trees and her half quarter horse and Mustang Sierra.
Biography
Carmelita "Carm" Little Turtle was an Apache/Tarahumara photographer[1] born in Santa Maria, California, 4 June 1952. She is known for producing/photography with Shenandoah Films in Arcata, California from 1980 to 1983. Her work engages with gender relations and women's rights.[2] Little Turtle uses photography, often humorously, to explore personal relationships between women and men. Her photography is known for bringing impossible moments to life, which give reality to her imagination. She creates a multitude of worlds in a Southwestern landscape that acts as a backdrop to the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. Little Turtle has published both a book and several articles in her work.
Little Turtle attended the Navajo Community College, graduating in 1978. She also attended the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, where she studied photography. Additionally, she studied photography at the College of the Redwoods, Eureka, California. She first began schooling in order to become a nurse before deciding to become an artist.
Little Turtle attended the Navajo Community College, graduating in 1978. She also attended the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, where she studied photography. Additionally, she studied photography at the College of the Redwoods, Eureka, California. She first began schooling in order to become a nurse before deciding to become an artist.