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Ned Jalbert is considered the foremost international authority on the mocotaugan( crooked knife).

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He is the author of two books and a dozen Exhibition catalogues, he is a sought after  researcher, museum consultant, art dealer, and an accredited member of the American Society of Interior Designers.  He is known for his work as a philanthropist, lecturer, exhibition designer, curator,

and Vetting expert.

 

 

The Mocotaugan ( Crooked Knife ) 

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Ned has  researched and studied thousands of crooked knives over the last 40 years, writing extensively about his findings. ​

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In 2003, he co-authored (with his late father, Russell R. Jalbert) Mocotaugan: The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife; The Woodland Indian's Indispensable Survival Tool.

A ground breaking research effort, the book, now in the United States Library of Congress, is widely accepted as the seminal work on the subject.

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In 2003, 20 years after publishing the book,  Ned launched the dedicated website Mocotaugan: The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife​  to serve as a central hub for all sharing the newest research and information on the mocotaugan.

 

Following the publication of Mocotaugan book, Ned exhibited widely, and lectured extensively on the mocotaugan. In 2005 he  co-curated the acclaimed exhibition of the same name at the Robert Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, Maine, and penned numerous magazine articles on the mocotaugan, receiving features in publications such as  Antiques and the Arts Weekly,  Tribal Art Magazine, the  Cape Cod Times,  The New York Times, Yankee Magazine,  The Sun Journal and a dedicated lecture feature in Wicked Local. ​

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 ​ Ned is the author, publisher, and webmaster of the website  The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife, a continuation of the book and the premier online resource dedicated exclusively to the subject. ​

 

Ned has facilitated the placement of  mocotaugans 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 Worcester Art Museum. 

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Authorship 

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In addition to the Mocotaugan book his writings include:

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• The critically acclaimed large scale book: To Satisfy the Desires of the Soul: Early Native Figurative Art from the Woodlands of North America                                                                               

• His definitive monographs include:

  • The Carvers Covenant: Reciprocity and Transformation in Southern Vancouver Island

  • A Diamond in the Rough: Understanding Diamond Willow Use amongst Plains Indians

  • Mic-Mac and Penobscot Porcupine Quilled Fire Screens

  • A Suspect Great Lakes Fantasy Pipe Bowl

  • The Definitive Resource Guide to the Crooked Knife ​                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Exhibitions and Antique Shows

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As an art dealer for 35 years, he has exhibited Native American art and fine art, including mocotaugans at the some of the most prestigious shows in the world.  His dynamic booths at shows in Washington, D.C., Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Boston are legendary. ​

 

As an exhibition curator Ned's work includes:

           Through Our Eyes  exhibition,  New York City, NY , Tambaran Gallery

           Mocotaugan: The Story and Art of the Crooked Knife  exhibition,  Bar Harbor, Maine

           The Indian Space Painters show in Boston, Mass.

           The Coat , the daring single-object show  in Santa Fe, New Mexico

           Masterminded a complete re-thinking and re-design of  the American Folk Art Show  at the                       Metropolitan Pavillion, New York City

            The Ned Jalbert Collection, 2003-2008, Santa Fe New Mexico, Whitehawk Shows

            American Indian Art Show, Washington, DC.

            Americana And Folk Art show , Sudbury, Mass.

            The Asian Fine Art Show, The Armory, New York City, NY

            The Ned Jalbert Collection, Nantucket, MA. , Silvia Gallery

            

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For many years, he proudly served on the prestigious Native American Art Vetting Committee for the prestigious Winter Antiques Show. ​

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 In 2010, he combined his two great passions—interior design and antiques—to completely reimagine the lay-out of The American Antique Show in New York City.

His re-imagined design was featured in The Magazine Antiques,   Antiques and the Arts Weekly,    The New York Times Slide Show Feature,   The New York Times Art Review; Made in the USA; Carved, Hooked & Framed .

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Author's Note: It was a particular honor to have The New York Times, acknowledge my re-design of the American Folk Art Show at the Metropolitan Pavillion and  specifically single out my booth and crooked knives in their review of the show. ​

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Art Dealer

 

Privately, Ned has worked with some of the leading collectors of Native American Art helping them to build their important private collections, including,  the Charles and Valerie Diker Collection, NY, the Eugene Thaw Collection, NY, the Alan J. Hirschfield Collection WY, the Dr. Fred Cessana Collection, CT, the  NY the Alex Balkanski Collection WY, the Tony Perry Collection VT, the Anne Ziff Collection NY, and the Gayle and Robert Greenfield Collection NY, the John W. and Susan G. Jackson Collection CT, and the Dr. Thomas St. Germain Whitecloud Collection LA, among others. ​

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Ned has facilitated the placement of  American Indian Art in the permanent collections of  The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, The Gilcrease Museum, The Shelburne Museum, The Robert Abbe Museum, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The National Museum of the American Indian, the Worcester Art Museum, and the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, and The New Orleans Museum of Art, and the Fenimore Art Museum.​

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Interior Design

 

During his 45 year career as an accredited member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). His offices - in Nantucket, Montecito, and the Boston area -all under his namesake company- provided the highest level of residential, commercial and institutional interior design services across the globe.  His interior design work has appeared in numerous national design publications, including Architectural Digest, Coastal Living Magazine,  Christies Great Escapes ( Issues 2 & 3), The Boston Globe Magazine, Signature Kitchens, New England Home Magazine, California Home and Design (March 2002 & October 2002),  Beautiful Home, Cape Cod Magazine, Belle Epoque, and Florida Home Magazine.

 

 

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Philanthropy

 

Deeply committed to cultural institutions, Ned has served on the board of trustees for the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, the Copley Society, and the Worcester Art Museum, as well as multiple non-profit and for-profit corporations.

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In recognition of his unwavering commitment to the institution, Ned was  deeply honored to have the Provincetown Art Association and Museum name gallery after him- The Ned Jalbert Gallery

 

 An active philanthropist, he is a Major Benefactor to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Mount Kearsarge Museum , and a Major Donor to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art  ; The Wall Street Journal 

 

  It is, perhaps, with Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and its world renowned Native American Art collections, that Ned's influence and philanthropy has been most influential. In addition to donating over a dozen masterpieces to the museum, Ned worked closely with the curatorial staff to elevate its Native American Art holdings. In Lee Rosenbaum's celebrated Wall Street Journal feature covering the museum's monumental permanent American Indian Art installation- curated by Gaylord Torrence- Ned's contribution of the rare, elaborately ornamented Ojibwa buffalo-skin coat from Ontario was specifically highlighted. Ned was interviewed and quoted directly regarding the piece, describing it as “a transformational object — something that can change how people think about an institution by creating a sensation.” ​

 

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The Return of King Philip's War Club

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  In 1995, Ned was named an honorary member of the Gay Head Band of the Wampanoag Tribe—an honor bestowed upon him by the legendary Sachem Chief Slow Turtle—in recognition of his pivotal efforts in facilitating the repatriation of the 17th Century King Philip's War Club.

This war club, once relegated to a flea market find, was discovered by Ned and returned to the Wampanoag People and the Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, MA.

Lost for years, this important object of the earliest period of Colonial America, would have been lost to history if not for Ned's repatriation efforts.

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News of the historic return appeared in the King Phillip's War: The history and Legacy of America's Conflict;  Schultz & Philbrick, et al,  the Boston Globe,  The New York Times,  Yankee Magazine,  Houghton-Miflin American History,  Telegram and Gazette,   Cape Cod Times,  UPI Archives,  South Coast Today

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