Gerald Nailor, Sr.
| Gerald Nailor | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Toh Yah |
| Born |
January 21, 1917 Pinedale, New Mexico |
| Died | August 13, 1952 (aged 35) |
| Nationality | Navajo |
| Education | Dorothy Dunn |
| Alma mater | University of Oklahoma |
| Known for | Painting |
| Style | Santa Fe Studio Style |
Gerald Nailor Sr. (1917–1952) or Toh Yah (Navajo: Tóyá) was a Navajo Studio painter from Picurís, New Mexico. Beginning in 1942, he was commissioned to paint the history of the Navajo people for a large mural at the Navajo Nation Council Chamber, which has been designated a National Historic Landmark.
Nailor was born in 1917 in Pinedale, New Mexico; his Navajo name is Toh Yah (Walking By the River). He enrolled in the Albuquerque Indian School from 1930 to 1934. After that he attended the Santa Fe Indian School, where he studied art under Dorothy Dunn from 1935 to 1937. After working under Dunn, Nailor spent a year studying with Kenneth Chapman and the Swedish muralist Olle Nordmark.
He met his future wife, who was working as a nurse at the Santa Fe Indian Hospital. Upon marrying, they relocated to Picuris Pueblo, New Mexico, where they reared their five children. Their son Gerald Nailor also became an artist.
In 1937, with his good friend the artist Allan Houser, he set up a studio in Santa Fe to paint and work on his silkscreen prints.
With fellow-artist and classmate Harrison Begay, Nailor founded "Tewa Enterprises", an art publishing firm specializing in Native American art, especially that of the two founders. Tewa Enterprises became known for the high quality of their silkscreen prints.
In 1939, Nailor, Houser and Velino Shije Herrera were commissioned by the WPA to paint a large mural, which is still installed in the Main Interior Building in Washington, D.C.
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