Create Authentic Southwest Style Decor With Painted Drums

Try painted drums if you are looking for a great rustic decorating idea. You can use decorative drums, made by Native American Indians to give your home true, southwestern style. 

I was recently looking for an easy and inexpensive way to redecorate my living room and give it a rustic, western flare, and started buying great southwestern accessories for rustic home decor. I ended up purchasing two beautiful painted drums that added the perfect rustic touch to my home and gave it that authentic, southwestern feel that I was looking for. 

The thing I love most about these painted drums is how they show a true reflection of Native American life and work through the paintings. Perhaps you are like me and truly appreciate the authentic creativity of Native American art. 

As you study the origin of these paintings you will be amazed at how the artistic spirit of the American Indians can be seen in the painted drum. The beautiful hand painted drum heads serve as a gallery for the expressions and motives of Native life. 

Because the American Indian drum artists find their inspiration through the work of their ancestors, owning one of these native drums allows you the unique privilege of being part of many generations of Native American artists. Each new line of Native drum painters creates their work, mingled with the past, to bring forth a truly unique handcrafted piece. 

As you learn about the history of painted drums, you will find that animal drums have always been the predominant Native American musical instruments of choice and hold special meaning to these Native people. The medium, with which they choose to paint, varies among drum painters and is a matter of personal preference. Some Native American artists still use hand ground natural dyes, though paint has also become an acceptable choice as traditional drums give way to modern expressions of culture and creativity. 

Just like the variations of mediums used to paint the drums, you will also see that drumming traditions vary between tribes. Some tribes play large drums while gathered in a circle around it, while the drums of other tribes are custom and personally decorated by the drummer. Now days it is very difficult to find true ceremonial drums, but the Native American hand drums of the Tarahumara Indians are among the most authentic Native drums suitable for playing in drumming circles or for southwestern home decorating. 

Drum painting is truly a unique art and an important part of the rich heritage of the Indian people. The painted drum has come to identify both the drummer and the tribe, as well preserve the American Indian culture through drawings of nature and legend. If you are drawn to the authenticity and values of the American Indians, you will no doubt enjoy adding a painted drum to your rustic home decorating.

See our entire gallery of Native Tarahumara Indian Painted Drums here.