travel

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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