Robert Stephen Albert - Koyaalas to the Rescue

Robert Stephen Albert is a friendly, approachable man who jokingly refers to himself as, “the greatest katsina carver you’ve never heard of.” Robert was born in 1964. He grew up mostly off-reservation. Robert says that he was consistently drawn to art from about age 4 or 5. He said he was “always sketching, drawing and making cartoons.” However, he added that he never took art seriously until he graduated from high school. He shared that his Lakota school counselor asked him, “What do you like to do? What makes you happy?” Robert replied, “art” so she recommended he apply to the Institute for American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe. He followed her wise advice, enrolled there and graduated in 1986 with a degree in “two-dimensional art” or painting. While at the school he learned to paint in diverse media and he also found himself drawn to return to katsina carvings.

Robert dates his career as a professional katsina carver to 1990. At that time, he was living in Tucson where he would sell simple dolls to diverse galleries for $200 to $300. He describes this period as one of “just surviving” financially.

He said in 1997 he “really turned the corner.” He was admitted to Santa Fe Indian Market and that same year he began to win prizes for his work. Robert believes that his distinctive talent is that he can capture facial expressions in wood that others cannot.

Let’s start with an exceptional piece that Robert has titled Honey Bandits. This amazingly detailed sculpture shows four terrified Koyaalas, who are in the midst of trying to steal honey, only to be interrupted by the “rightful owners,” a pair of large bears. It has an astonishing level of detail on the clowns, bears, the pots, tree roots and rope at the base of the carving.

Another example of his exceptional skill is shown in Snooze, You Lose. Robert says, “This sculpture depicts a hunter clown who took a lunch break after stalking a prized buck. When he fell asleep, the buck stole his quiver of arrows and ate some of his lunch.” This is great humor captured in cottonwood root. It takes a creative, zany mind to come up with such a theme.

Speaking of creativity, Robert indicated that at times having such a mind can be a curse. He noted that a few years ago, he found himself so obsessed with his katsina carvings he couldn’t “put them down.” “It was driving me insane.” A turning point emerged when he began carving clowns. He said in making Koyaalas, “all the pressures went away,” as they provided “an avenue not to be so restricted, and have greater freedom.”

Given such carving skill, Robert has found consistent success in the Indian art market. These days he mostly sells to private customers and fulfills special orders. He has accomplished his dream of becoming a successful, full-time artist. He is one of the most accomplished artists working the sculptural style.