The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife
by Ned Jalbert
The Woodland Indian's Indispensable Survival Tool
About the author
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Many consider Ned Jalbert the foremost international authority on the crooked knife. He has researched and studied thousands of crooked knives over the last 40 years..
In 2003, he co-authored (with his father Russell R. Jalbert, now deceased), Mocotaugan: The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife; The Woodland Indian's Indespensible survival tool .
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The book, now in the United States Library of Congress, is widely accepted as the seminal work on the subject.
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Russell R. Jalbert was an accomplished writer, lecturer, educator, humanitarian, Naval pilot, husband, father and grand father. He is the author of numerous books and articles. As one of the early proponents of the crooked knife, He understood that a book could cause a ripple effect and that no author can predict the outcome a single work may have. Russell would have been thrilled with the current crooked knife renaissance. The book's success would not have been possible without his brilliance and expertise.
After publishing The Mocotaugan Book , Ned co-curated the acclaimed Crooked Knife exhibition of the same name, penning magazine articles, creating websites, exhibiting, and extensively lecturing on the story and art of the crooked knife. He is the author and publisher of the The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife, a website and online resource dedicated exclusively o the crooked knife.
https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/news/2004/11/28/unique-tool-indians-finally-gets/50923861007/
https://www.wickedlocal.com/story/hingham-journal/2006/09/14/indian-art-lecture/40012135007/
https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/the-art-of-the-crooked-knife/
https://www.tribalartmagazine.com/en/back-issues/99-tribal-38-summer-2005.html
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Ned has been responsible for the placement crooked knives in the permanent collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, The Robert Abbe Museum, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The National Museum of the American Indian, and The Worcester Art Museum as well as in many important private collections.
In addition to The Mocotaugan Book, he is co-author of the critically acclaimed book To Satisfy the Desires of the Soul; Early Native Figurative Art from the Woodlands of North America, as well as author and publisher of Masterpieces of American Indian Art .
Ned was co-curator of the Native American Art and the Indian Space Painters show in Boston, the Through Our Eyes exhibit in New York, NY, and the daring single object show The Coat , in Santa Fe, NM. For 35 years he has exhibited crooked knives at the finest art shows in the world serving on the prestigious vetting committee of the Winter Antiques Show .
An accredited member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), his interior design work has appeared in numerous national design publications including Architectural Digest, New England Home Magazine, California Design, Cape Cod Magazine, Yankee Magazine , Florida Home Magazine, amongst others. In 2010 he combined his two passions- interior design with art and antiques - to completely reimagine The American Antique Show in New York City.
https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/22/arts/design/22american.html
https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/01/22/arts/0122-amer_2.html
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Author's note: It was great to have The New York Times specifically mention crooked knives in the review of The American Antique Show
He has served on the board of trustees for the Provincetown Art Museum, the Copley Society of the Worcester Art Museum, as well as many other not-for-profit organizations. Ned is an active philanthropist becoming a Major Benefactor to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and a Major Donor to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. He is honored to have the Ned Jalbert Gallery of Art named after him at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704107104574572160369308496
https://www.nelson-atkins.org/collection/american-indian/
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In 1995, Ned was named an honorary member of the Gayhead Band of the Wampanoag Tribe, an honor bestowed upon him by the legendary sachem Chief Slow Turtle, for his efforts in the return of King Philip's war club.
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/06/19/King-Philips-warclub-returned/7265803534400/
https://www.southcoasttoday.com/story/news/1995/06/05/war-club-is-yard-sale/50656373007/
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