Gerald Nailor
Gerald Nailor was a Navajo studio painter from New Mexico (1917-1952). He painted a National Historic Landmark in 1942 when he was commissioned to paint a mural that described the history of the Navajo people.
Much like the other Native American artists we have researched, Nailor studied at Santa Fe Indian School, learning art under Dorothy Dunn. In 1937, Nailor and his peer Allan Houser, created a studio in Santa Fe where they worked on silkscreen prints.
Nailor’s work is inspired mostly by his Navajo upbringing. He created many of the silkscreens with his knowledge of Navajo myth. However, he had an early death at only 35 years old. His paintings are among the rarest of the students who studied at Santa Fe Indian School under Dunn.