Native American People
Artist Kami Hines has great respect for all Native Americans and especially the Nez Perce people. This is not surprising as her family history links her grandmother and great-grandmother to the Looking Glass line of the Nez Perce. Looking Glass was a war chief serving under Chief Joseph. If you study the faces of the old warriors in this series, you may find resignation; but dignity and courage are also revealed. Life was so incredibly hard on the people, but inner strength and spiritual depth resonate in their eyes. Chief Joseph asked a question of the white chief that received no answer: Why is it that when a red man kills a white man, it is an act of war; but when a white man kills a red man, it is not even considered wrong? He declared that his people "would fight no more forever", but defeat on the battlefield does not mean defeat of the soul.
During childhood visits to her grandmother on the reservation, it was Kami's privilege to experience and partially absorb a culture different than the one in which she lived. She delighted in walking through the woods when she prayed; in seeing eagles soar overhead, and Mrs. Hines still remembers the sound of cougars in the night. When she realized not everyone shared these rich experiences, she became very thankful. Her grandmother's friends were polite and gracious to Kami, offering their best when she and Nana came for tea. No matter what the world thought of them, these ladies saw themselves as valuable. Kami strives to communicate that intrinsic value in her drawings. Some may see little, brown wrinkled ladies; but Kami seeks to portray the beauty of ethnicity and a respect for their history. When her grandmother died, a symbol of bravery was placed in her folded hands by a tribal elder. The ways of the Nez Perce people are not secret, but they are sacred. Mrs. Hines is not only thankful for her heritage; she wishes to preserve and honor it with her art.