Native Now 2023

A Lakota woman moved from her reservation in South Dakota to Dallas in 1960, after encouragement from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. She was promised jobs, domestic comfort, and a happy new life. Those promises were not true, and she missed her rez life. She was resilient and she made a home in Dallas, transforming into an Urban Native. 

Artist represented: Patrick Hunter (Ojibwe)

A Comanche girl dreams of going to college. She hopes to become a nurse like her grandmother and her mother. Their legacies as tribal college graduates have strong resonance for her. The memories of these strong women keep her grounded as she navigates teenage life. 

Artists represented: Eric Tippeconnic (Comanche), Eighth Generation (intertribal), Steph Littlebird (Chinook-Kapapuyan, member of Oregon’s Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde), Richard Shorty (Northern Tuchone), Jennie Whitehorse (Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho), Stephen Paul Judd (Kiowa-Choctaw)/NTVS, The Academic Asdzaa (Dine), Levi Jiron (Isleta Pueblo), Stefanie of Twisted Feathers Sop (Chippwea-Cree tribe of Montana), Taylor Dunson. 

A Paiute man is proud of his heritage and the uniqueness of his culture. He wears it every day. His shoes, hats, and ribbon shirts announce to the world that he is Native and Native is cool. Wearing Native-designed and Native-embellished items on the street is his way of being an Urban Native. 

Artists represented: Kelly Tudor (Lipan Apache), Eric Tippeconnic (Comanche), Sampson Dewey (Paiute), Traci Jackson (Diné), Major Wilson (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Rick Longfox (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Susan Kittley, Thunder Voice Hat Co. (Diné).  

A Choctaw woman walks into every room with a presence, founded in her Native identity. Her jewelry and accessories proudly show her Choctaw citizenship and her personality. As she adorns herself in the morning, she plans her upcoming calendar and the ways in which she supports and represents her Nation. 

Artists represented: Fannie Hickman (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Denise Miguel, Robert Redbird (Kiowa), Donita Wilson (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Jo Leitka (Seminole Nation of Oklahoma), Pauline Longfox (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Luana Strike-Axe Murphy (Ponca, Lenape, Oglala, Otoe, Ioway), Melissa Guerrero (Choctaw). 

A Choctaw woman and a Pawnee man are elders in their community. Auntie makes traditional dressed for her nieces and relatives, stitching in tribal and family memory. Uncle sings the stories and holds onto those memories to share with all the generations to come. 

Artists represented: Judy Davis (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Fannie Hickman (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Pauline Longfox (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Niki Branch (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Karen Clarkson (Choctaw), Eugene Brown (Miami of Oklahoma), Eighth Generation (intertribal), William Harjo (Muscogee), The Youngest Healer of his People (Dene). 

A Lakota woman is a Water Protector. Her motto is Mni Wiconi (‘Water is Life’). She chanted and she marched and she protected at Standing Rock. #NoDAPL. She shows up where water and land need protection from the forces of destruction, of oil, and of greed. 

Artists represented: Steph Littlebird (Chinook-Kapapuyan, member of Oregon’s Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde), Mark Henderson (Wei-wai-kum Band of the Kwakwaka’waku Nation), Eugene Taphahe, Chris Balch, Nicolas Lampert, Bitchin Design Co, Just Seeds Collective. 

A Cherokee/Seminole man continually uncovers why Native history is relevant to life today. He writes about history of societies and of kinship. He spreads awareness about colonization, displacement, incarceration, termination, relocation. He shares the truth of resilience, resistance, and sovereignty. 

Artists represented: Marcus Cadman (Diné, Kickapoo), Bertha Chaves (Diné), Irvin Tom (Diné), Elsie Willis (Diné), Bobby Von Martin (Choctaw), Aaron Carapella, Charles O. Paullin and John K. Wright, Eli Hickman (Diné, Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Nick Alan Foote (Tlingit).

A Caddo woman dedicates her time to the missing and murdered indigenous people who could be forgotten without her. She reminds us that murder of Native women occurs ten times more than the national average, among many other harrowing tragedies. She reads. She listens. She activates. 

Artists represented: Brian Larney (Choctaw, Seminole), Dana Tiger (Muscogee, Seminole, Cherokee), Christy Swimmer McLemore (Citizen of the Cherokee Nation), Taylor Dunson, Stefanie of Twisted Feathers Shop (Chippewa-Cree Tribe of Montana), KM McCloskey, Stephen Paul Judd (Kiowa, Choctaw)/NTVS. 

A Two Spirit Waco artist, a member of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, creates and experiments to support Native community members today, keeping heritage alive. They put their creative energy into everything they make hoping that their vitality and pride will shine through their artworks and designs. 

Artists represented: Eric Alvarado (Ndee-Mexican), Brian Larney (Choctaw, Seminole), Matika Wilbur (Swinomish-Tulalip), Cecil Youngfox (Ojibwe, Metis), Doris Cyrette (Ojibwe), Taylor Dunson, Latisha McGee (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Sarah of Little Pudge Company, Michael Tongkeamha (Kiowa), Jennifer Neal (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians) and National Urban Indian Family Coalition (intertribal).

A classroom of intertribal kids learns the languages of their ancestors. Their parents and teachers ensure that these children will be Language Keepers for future generations. Their languages will not die. This important mission is mixed with fun, and awareness about many diverse Indigenous traditions. 

Artists represented: Jim Oskineegish (Ahnisnabae), Ningiukulu Teevee (Inuit), Cherokee Images (Tsalagi Cherokee), Simone Diamon (Coast Salish) and Paul Windsor (Haisla-Heiltsuk), Native Teaching Aids (intertribal), Kerry Willis (Choctaw Indians of Oklahoma), Alice Barrientez (Lipan Apache, Comanche, Isleta Pueblo, Diné).