form which symbolizes truth or righteousness." He infused it with the Native American art style Tohokmu (spider web). His work has been compared to Cubism, though he rejected the neo-Cubist label in favor of situating his work firmly within Lakota epistemology. Through his art, he wanted to portray the contemporary realities of his tribal culture. During the 1930s and the Great Depression, Howe was employed by the Works Progress Administration in South Dakota. He painted a set of murals for the municipal auditorium in Mobridge and a mural within the dome of the Carnegie Library, now the Carnegie Resource Center, in Mitchell, South Dakota. Howe worked as an art instructor at Pierre High School in 1939. From 1948 to 1971, he designed panels for the Corn Palace in Mitchell. Howe became Professor of Art at the University of South Dakota, in Vermillion, South Dakota, in 1957. He taught there until 1983. Survey texts and articles on Native American modern art often credit Howe with influencing the development of contemporary art in the Indian community. In 1958 he was rejected from a show of Native American art at the Philbrook Museum because his work did not meet the criteria of "traditional" Indian style. Howe wrote in protest, "Are we to be held back forever with one phase of Indian painting that is the most common way? Are we to be herded like a bunch of sheep, with no right for individualism, dictated to as the Indian has always been, put on reservations and treated like a child and only the White Man know what is best for him... but one could easily turn to become a social protest painter. I only hope the Art World will not be one more contributor to holding us in chains."His protest led to the acceptance of abstraction within the community. Over his 41-year career, Oscar Howe won numerous awards, including grand and first prizes. His works were displayed all over the world, including Paris, France and London, England, with more than 50 solo shows. Honors 1960, named Artist Laureate of South Dakota. 1966, awarded the Waite Phillips trophy for outstanding contributions to American Indian art from the Philbrook Art Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma. 1970 received the Golden Bear Award from the University of Oklahoma, Norman 1973 first recipient of the South Dakota Governor's Award for Creative Achievement 1971 appointed Lecturer to the Near East and South