American Indian Arts Celebration

In south Hendry Co. is the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation. This weekend was the annual American Indian Arts Celebration, so I thought I'd head down and check it out. Entering the reservation I realized this is a city, complete with schools, hospitals and fire station.  The location of the AIAC was on the grounds of the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum (featuring the history of the Seminole tribe of Florida and is a Smithsonian Affliiation Program) with vendors, music and food (which really smelled great)!  One facet of the celebration focused on native dances.  Shown below are the arrow dance (which asked protection on warriors going to battle), the earth dance (using rings to symbolize the planets), rainbow dance (after the rains had come) and others.  This was a family who travelled showing their native Apache dances and were quite good.  More in my next entry on this fun day on the reservation.

The guy in red looks like a cow and turkey was chasing him.