Native American Folk Art
Native American broadly describes any Indigenous people in North America and encompasses hundreds of tribes and groups, all with distinct cultures. Native American–style furniture and decor likewise varies widely, from pieces created by Indigenous people to those appropriated by non-native designers.
Indigenous furniture’s rich heritage includes the bentwood boxes of the Northwest Coast carved from cedar for storing household or ceremonial objects. Generations of Native American people have made baskets for holding household items, with those in the Northeast using sweetgrass and those in the Southeast using pine needles and wicker. Artisans in the Plateau region wove watertight pieces like cradles from plant materials. Although these objects were intricately made, they were usually utilitarian rather than decorative.
The colonization of North America and the removal of Indigenous people from their lands led to the suppression of these practices. Many styles that used Native American motifs — such as Southwestern style, which was heavily influenced by the geometric patterns of Navajo textiles — have historically not involved Indigenous creators and, instead, have taken their traditions without their tribal context.
When decorating a home with Native American–style furniture, it is important to do so respectfully, by understanding the origins of motifs and objects and examining who profits from their sale. There are now Indigenous-led companies, such as Cherokee designer Cray Bauxmont-Flynn’s Amatoya and Totem House Design, promoting Indigenous work in furniture and home decor. Supporting Indigenous artists and artisans is essential to confronting the still pervasive issue of cultural appropriation in design.
Find a collection of Native American living room furniture, folk art, rugs and carpets, decorative objects and other items on 1stDibs.
1930s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wool
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Multi-gemstone, Silver
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Ceramic, Paint
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
1970s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Paper
Mid-20th Century North American Native American Folk Art
Wool
Early 19th Century North American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
Early 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 20th Century Native American Folk Art
Pottery
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wool
1940s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wood
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wool
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Natural Fiber
Early 1900s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Twig
1940s North American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wool
Early 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Burl
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wool
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wool
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Paint, Ceramic
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Beads
20th Century Canadian Native American Folk Art
Cedar
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide, Beads
19th Century North American Antique Native American Folk Art
Bone, Wood
1970s Canadian Vintage Native American Folk Art
Pine
1880s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Canadian Native American Folk Art
Antler
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wood
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 1900s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wool
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Cotton, Beads
1920s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wool
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Sterling Silver
Late 20th Century North American Native American Folk Art
Sterling Silver
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Earthenware
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood, Paint
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Natural Fiber, Willow
16th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Bone, Driftwood
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Wood, Paint
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Ceramic, Felt, Paint
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
Late 20th Century Native American Folk Art
Copper