W. Richard West, a Cheyenne artist, sculptor, and educator from Oklahoma, has been appointed a Commissioner of the Indian Arts-and Crafts Board, Secretary of the Interior Ceci1 D • Andrus announced today.
West's art work is in many major museum and private collections, and he has received numerous awards including the Waite Phillips Trophy presented by the Philbrook Art Center. From 1947 to 1970 he was director of the Art Department of' Bacone College, and then until 1978 he served as chairman or the Humanities Division at Haskell Indian Junior College. He
ho1ds B.F.A. and M.F.A. degrees from the University of' Ok1ab.oma, and an honorary D.F.A. from Baker University.
The Indian Arts and Crafts Board promotes the development of Native American arts and handcrafts-the creative work of Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut people. The Board provides professional advisory services and operates three museums located in Browning, Montana; .Anadarko, Oklahoma; and Rapid City, South Dakota, which function as centers for exhibition study and the sale of contemporary Native .American arts and crafts.
Other Commissioners of the Indian Arts and Craft’s Board are Lloyd Kiva New past president of' the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico; Royal B. Hassrick, author and anthropologist William H. Crowe designer-craftsman in wood; and Gerald J. Gray, bilingual-bicultural education specialist.
