Arthur C. Begay

{{short description|American painter}} {{Infobox person | name = Arthur C. Begay | native_name = | native_name_lang = | birth_date = {{Birth date|1932|12|15}} | birth_place = Newcomb, New Mexico | death_date = {{Death year and age|2010|1932}} | death_place = | alma_mater = | occupation = painter }}

alt=painting of a girl weaving a rug surrounded by goats in a desert landscape|thumb|"Girl Rug Weaver and Her Goats," circa 1990'''Arthur C. Begay''' (December 15, 1932 – 2010) was a Navajo American painter born in Newcomb, New Mexico.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Arthur C. Begay {{!}} 9 Artworks at Auction {{!}} MutualArt|url=https://www.mutualart.com/Artist/Arthur-C--Begay/34BDEF81CE981C80|access-date=2021-11-09|website=www.mutualart.com|language=en}}</ref> Begay has exhibited his work across the country<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=King|first=Jeanne Snodgrass|url=http://archive.org/details/americanindianpa00king|title=American Indian painters; a biographical directory|date=1968|publisher=New York : Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation|others=Smithsonian Libraries|pages=17}}</ref> and is known for his colorful, flat style paintings. Some of his works are in the permanent collection of institutions including the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Navajo Lady Basket Dancers {{!}} National Museum of the American Indian|url=https://americanindian.si.edu/collections-search/objects/NMAI_281980?destination=edan_searchtab?page=4&edan_q=%252A%253A%252A&edan_fq%255B0%255D=set_name%253A%2522Din%25C3%25A9%2520%2528Navajo%2529%2522&edan_fq%255B1%255D=name%253A%2522Mansfield%252C%2520R.%2520E.%2522&edan_fq%255B2%255D=metadata_usage%253A%2522CC0%2522|access-date=2021-11-09|website=americanindian.si.edu}}</ref>

Begay's work included depictions of everyday life, often with scenic backgrounds including Monument Valley and Shiprock.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Arthur C. Begay Paintings - Adobe Gallery, Santa Fe|url=https://www.adobegallery.com/artist/Arthur_Begay_Navajo_b_1932100177046|access-date=2021-11-09|website=www.adobegallery.com}}</ref> After winning a fellowship, Begay worked for a year in the 1950s studying with illustrator Norman Rockwell at his workshop in Westport, Connecticut. Begay's work often shows this influence.<ref name=":1" />

Begay attended Phoenix High School.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lester|first=Patrick D. (Patrick David)|url=http://archive.org/details/biographicaldire0000lest|title=The biographical directory of Native American painters|date=1995|publisher=Tulsa, OK : SIR Publications; Norman, OK : Distributed by University of Oklahoma Press|others=Internet Archive|isbn=978-0-8061-9936-8}}</ref> He lived much of his life in Shiprock, New Mexico. In addition to exhibiting at galleries and fairs, his work was sold in local trading posts.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Eddington|first=Patrick|url=http://archive.org/details/tradingpostguide0000eddi|title=Trading post guidebook : where to find the trading posts, galleries, auctions, artists, and museums of the Four Corners region|date=1995|publisher=Flagstaff, Ariz. : Northland Pub.|others=Internet Archive|isbn=978-0-87358-612-2}}</ref>

== External links ==

* [https://americanindian.si.edu/collections-search/search?edan_q=arthur%20c.%20begay Arthur C. Begay works at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian]

== References == {{Reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Begay, Arthur C.}} Category:2010 deaths Category:20th-century American painters Category:20th-century indigenous painters of the Americas Category:Navajo painters Category:Navajo artists Category:Painters from New Mexico Category:21st-century Native American artists Category:1932 births