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.
1910s Canadian Vintage Native American Folk Art
Cedar
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
Early 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wool
1650s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wood
1990s Canadian Native American Folk Art
Wood
Mid-20th Century North American Native American Folk Art
Fur, Leather, Wool
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
1930s Canadian Vintage Native American Folk Art
Cedar
1930s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Cedar
Early 1900s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Porcelain
1940s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
1890s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Beads
1890s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Beads
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
1890s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Beads
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Pottery
1890s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Beads
1910s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Beads
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Hide
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
Early 1900s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide, Beads, Feathers
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Earthenware
19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Bone
Mid-20th Century Canadian Native American Folk Art
Wood
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Iron
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Reed, Softwood
1940s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Other
1990s Canadian Native American Folk Art
Paper
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
1870s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Iron
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wood
1870s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
1920s Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wool
Mid-20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Pottery
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
1870s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Hide
20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Acrylic
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
1870s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Wood
Early 1900s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Iron
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Iron
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
1850s American Antique Native American Folk Art
Iron
1920s American Vintage Native American Folk Art
Wool
Early 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Other
Late 20th Century American Native American Folk Art
Coral, Alabaster
Late 19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other
Mid-19th Century American Antique Native American Folk Art
Other