Bill Holm (art historian)
Bill Holm (born 1925 in Roundup, Montana) is a U.S. artist, author and art historian specializing in the visual arts of Northwest Coast Native Americans as well as a practitioner and teacher of the Northwest Coast art style. He is Professor Emeritus of Art History, and Curator Emeritus of Northwest Coast Indian Art at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture and occasionally lectures at the University of Washington in Seattle.
His 1965 book Northwest Coast Indian Art: An Analysis of Form has for decades been the standard introductory text in the field; it is currently in its 18th printing. The 50th Anniversary Edition was published in 2015. This edition includes a new forward, artists' reflections, and other prefatory material. Most importantly, however, it has better photos and color art, which shows a critical dimension to this art.
His students have included the Haida carver Freda Diesing and many others.
His eight books have won scholarly acclaim and recognition with four Washington State Governor's Writers Awards, and two special Governor's awards. His achievements as an artist were celebrated in a 2000 book, Sun Dogs and Eagle Down, The Indian Paintings of Bill Holm. In 2001, he was honored with a certificate of appreciation from the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian people of Southeast Alaska through the Sealaska Heritage Institute. The Native American Art Studies Association recognized him with its Honor Award in 1991. The University of Washington honored him with a Distinguished Achievement Award from the College of Arts and Sciences in 1994 and selected him to give the annual University Faculty Lecture in 2003. He also received the Burke award for courage, excellence and bravery in 2010.
The Bill Holm Center at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture was named for him, and the University of Washington annually gives out The Bill Holm Center Graduate Fellowship which funds students doing research and writing on Native art of the Pacific Northwest Coast.
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