Cherokee Bears Project
One of the things I remembered from our past visit to Cherokee, NC was the painted fiberglass bears throughout the town. Since we were without children that time, I knew my boys would enjoy being on the lookout for them on this visit. The bear project started in 2005 and showcases different artist within the Qualia boundary. Bears appear in many Cherokee folk tales and legends. For those who do not know, Cherokee is a town on the reservation of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation. I will be sharing some of the places we visited in the area as well as the Great Smoky Mountains National Park which is just a mile or two away from Cherokee.
Here are the bears we found! There are 19 bears but some were not on display as they are in the process of being restored as the colors have faded. I found it interesting that several of them had masks and I will say that 100% of people were wearing mask indoors which a state mandate in North Carolina.
Sequoyah Bear (painted by Charles Saunooke)
Eagle Dancer Bear (painted by Lora Powell)
Cherokee Sunset Bear (painted by Joel Queen)
Patriot Bear (painted by William Harris Jr)
Bear on the Little Tennessee River (Jeannine Hornbuckle)
Language Bear (painted by Billie Jo Rich)
Forefathers Bear (painted by Tim Chiltoskie)
Children’s Mixed Bear (painted by the Cherokee Youth Center)
Legends Bear (painted by Henrietta Lambert)
Out of Hiber Nation Bear (painted by Niki Nations)
Harmony of Life Bear (painted by Niki Nations)
Big Cove Bear (painted by Mario Esquivel)
Hope you enjoyed this little tour of the Cherokee bears. I will leave you with the large statue in front of the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.
A bientôt!
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25 Comments
Terri Gardner
I love things like this. Years ago, about the same time as the bears, The fact that they are in masks is even better. Talk about a public service announcement!
Kansas City had a cow art project back in 2001. It was fun finding different ones in the city. I don’t think there are hardly any left-they were put up for auction or something.
I really like the bears. I followed Bruno last month on his trek to Missouri. Did you hear about him? Once he got to Saint Louis, he got himself in between a rock and a hard place. Missouri Conservation had to step in and take action. Bruno is now safely in a state park with other bears.
mimifce
Never heard of Bruno. I have to look him up! We have had a bear in our subdivision, about 2 years ago. But no sighting since.
Lizzie
These are such great pieces of art!
Lizzie
http://www.lizzieinlace.com
mimifce
Yes! I have a couple favorites.
Shea
These are so cool! I love that some of the bears are wearing masks. And that sounds like such a fun adventure finding them all!
mimifce
I told the boys I would pay them a dollar for each bear they spotted before me lol!
jodie filogomo
This is so neat Mireille. Of course it cracked me up that some bears had masks on!!
OXOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
mimifce
Yep, pretty funny!
Jennifer
This is such a cool project!! Love that they are wearing masks!
Jennifer
Curated by Jennifer
mimifce
It was pretty neat.
Cheryl Tucker
Oh gosh what fabulous pictures! I would love to see them in person. What a beautiful area!
Peace!
Cheryl
northwestmountainliving.com
mimifce
It was one of the things on my list to do even though i had seen them before. I really like them!
Lovely
The artworks are beautiful, love all the painted bear statues
xoxo
Lovely
http://mynameislovely.com
mimifce
They are really quite amazing, I am glad they are working on restoring them.
Midlife and Beyond
What a lovely place this looks to visit. I loved the pics of the painted bear statues.
Alison xx
mimifce
More pictures to come of all the beautfiful scenery!
Marisa Cavaleiro
Bears statues with masks on, omg!!
xoxo
marisasclosetblog.com
mimifce
The boys noticed the masks before I did!
Carrie @ Curly Crafty Mom
This is so neat! We did something like this in St. Louis several years ago, but with cakes with candles! They are still standing all over St. Louis, check it out it is pretty neat: http://stlouis250cakelovers.com/?page_id=65
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
mimifce
Oh, cool! Going to check that out. I think Atlanta had some dolphins at some point and we went to Charleston and they had some turtles. Just never have seen as many or looked for them I guess.
Shauna
I love the flag bear, so cool!!
Shauna
http://www.lipglossandlace.net
mimifce
That was a pretty neat one, it is in the Cherokee veteran’s park.
Michelle
These are so awesome! They will be featured on Creative Compulsions this week.
Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
mimifce
Thanks, Michelle! I knew they would appeal to your creative nature!
Michelle
You know me well, Mireille! ?