The People:
Allen Long
Mask maker Allen Long (1917-1983) was the son of Will West Long (1870-1947), Cherokee medicine man and an authority on Cherokee cultural traditions. Born in 1917, when he was 12 years old, Long learned how to make masks from his father. He made a variety of masks including the booger mask, medicine man, warrior, and wildcat. Primarily, Long used buckeye to carve his masks and finished them by staining them with shoe polish, a technique he used instead of the traditional red clay stain which was not permanent. In 1975, the Indian Arts and Crafts Board and Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual honored him with an exhibition of his work.
Read more about Allen Long on the Cherokee Traditions website.
