Lalakonti Ceremony
Sarah Almira Henry (also known as Oliver Ainsley, American, 1862–1950)
Oil on canvas, 23 ½ × 19 ½ in.
Framed: 29 × 26 in.
Signed lower right: Sarah Henry
Exhibited: Salons of America, New York, 1923, No. 498
This evocative painting by Sarah Almira Henry—exhibited in 1923 at the Salons of America under the title Lalakonti Ceremony—offers a rare early 20th-century artistic engagement with Pueblo ceremonial life. In a sunlit adobe plaza, a circle of dancers in traditional white and ochre garments performs a ritual movement before a watchful crowd. The composition is filled with rhythm, cultural respect, and atmospheric warmth.
Henry, who also worked under the name Oliver Ainsley, captured Indigenous subjects with an observant and empathetic eye. Her participation in the Salons of America—a democratic alternative to academic juried shows—marks her among a group of modern artists interested in authentic, lived American experiences beyond the urban sphere. This work stands as a significant intersection of artistic vision and cultural documentation during a pivotal moment in American art history.
