Native artwork is honestly fucking gorgeous and it infuriates me that when you think of or try to look up “Native American art”, you get fetishistic, colonizer bullshit.
I’m so fucking sick of it. We’re always defined by how other people see us.
That and native art is so underrated too. It’s hard to get attention to my artwork, it’s hard to get attention to any native artist, art competition, gallery.. anything. We all spend hours, days, even weeks honing our skills and creating art for ourselves and others. People only want the creations we slave over when it’s cheap or free. They don’t recognize each detail and it’s meaning or the intricacies we took time to sketch out or bead in or sew or anything.
I go to festivals in my area where lots of indigenous people (namely First Nations or Salish) are. A lot of their tents have the stereotypical fetishing native art incorporated into a product somehow and it makes me a little forlorn, but there isn’t much I can do but be sad. Now that’s a part of a bigger issue I can’t get into now, but you see the problem.
Art from all nations needs to be recognized.
I bought art from a creator named Harmony Hoss. She was so friendly and she sells her art at Pike’s Place in Seattle as a Tlingit woman. Tell me her formline isn’t absolutely gorgeous. But she goes so unrecognized because people are so unimpressed with her hard work.
Anyways, support native artists.
For anyone who wants to support Harmony Hoss, she has a website!
Unfortunately, it’s incredibly difficult finding real Native artists online just because of how many people blatantly lie or use misdirection to make people think that they’re Native. If anyone has recommendations for Native artists, feel free to share them!
Here are some native artists and businesses!
Sa-Cinn - https://sa-cinn.com/ - Northwest Coastal-based native business that showcases different artists who make a variety of items such as prints, blankets, jewelry, and drums.
Dancing Blackbird - https://dancingblackbird.com/ - Native hat-band artist based in Arizona. (https://etsy.me/2ES5FDi)
Shotridge - https://shotridgenativeamericanart.com/ - Family-owned Tlingit art business. (https://etsy.me/2EOXXtt)
Harmony Hoss - http://harmonys-art.com/ - Tlingit traditional artist who sells prints online and in Pike’s Place, Seattle. (https://instagram.com/hoss.harmony?igshid=fmqf1v8fjpic)
Thunder Voice Hat co - https://www.thundervoicehatco.com/ - Non-mass produced Navajo-made hats. (https://instagram.com/thundervoicehatco?igshid=qee5nrj3sx0g)
Ahyoka Studio - https://etsy.me/2Zo9ucx - Oji-Cree creator of keychains, earrings, and stylized dreamcatchers. (https://instagram.com/ahyokastudio?igshid=mzkx8liuives)
Earth Maidens Emporium - https://etsy.me/399rAn7 - Jewelry and stylized dreamcatchers made by a Cherokee man and his partner.
Nipinet - https://instagram.com/nipinet?igshid=1f5o0z2i288bx - Anishinaabe Métis tattoo artist (& a mutual of mine. 🖤)
David Robert Boxley - http://davidrobertboxley.com/ - Tsimshian artist. (https://instagram.com/davidrobertboxley?igshid=jktg991on3tm)
Spiderstitch - https://instagram.com/spiderstich?igshid=1eehi5qj4qnds - Mexica-Wixárika artist who handmakes beaded earrings.
Beyond Buckskin Boutique - http://shop.beyondbuckskin.com/ - Lots of different native fashion. Their buy native list: http://www.beyondbuckskin.com/p/buy-native.html?m=1
Here’s some more that are some of my faves!
John Isaiah Pepion (Instagram link)- Blackfeet contemporary ledger artist who also has earrings, phone cases, and blankets on his site which is linked on his IG bio. My fave t-shirt is from one of his pieces back when he was first testing out merch and he ran some off. I’m still crossing my fingers and trying not to hit him up like “this would be dope on a shit” every time he posts a new piece
The Chief’s Daughter (Instagram link) - Karli Crow Shoe a Pikanii/Blackfoot/Nez Perce designer who focuses mainly on beadwork; she does a ton of custom works and is influenced heavily by Niitsitapi culture for sellable work
Bunky Echo-Hawk (Instagram link) - Pawnee/Yakima visual artist and visual performer. You’ve probably seen his work floating around Cyber NDN Country even if you’ve never heard of him; he’s the one who painted Yoda as a Pawnee that one time years and ages ago. He sells prints and stickers on his website where there’s a link in his IG bio; he’s pretty popular but Imma always feel like everybody needs to know Bunky’s work
Tumblr’s own resident Bear But Not Really That Kind, @baapi-makwa who’s Insta link is here. An Ojibwe artist working almost exclusively with ink and pens, there’s a link to his Patreon in his bio as well
Kiamichi who is on and off tumblr as @mahtheyzhawey and can be found on Instagram here and is an amazing beadwork artist from the Ponka and Chahta Nations. She made my sweet ass piece with the big ol coyote medallion got me lookin like my cousin on Tribal Council and shit
The Cauldron & The Crown (Instagram link with a link to the shop in the bio) - BlackNDN Tsalagi jewelry maker whomst is on here as well but tbh I can only remember their personal blog and not their arty blog which is my fault but to keep it a hunnid, @crouchingtiger-hiddennegro is funny as hell and I have no room in my heart for anything else
Needle Knot And Thread (Instagram link) - May’s a textile artist from the Tsalagi Nation and makes such dope lil embroidery samples, earrings, patches, and quilt squares n stuff! There’s a link to an etsy shop in the bio
Ali Watson (Instagram link) - an Oglala Lakota jewelry maker who’s also a cool person! My fave pair of earrings was made by Ali! The turquoise ones with the dentalium drops; there’s a link to a main website in the bio
Panda Moon (Instagram link) - Y’all remember that dope beaded moon pin I got not too long ago with the little bat dangle? The homie Jennifer made it! She’s Southern Cheyenne and beads jewelry and pins. She could REALLY use the capital right now as she’s in a financially dire situation having recently escaped a horrible situation. If you don’t want to buy anything from her which, why wouldn’t you but that’s none of my business; there’s a link to her GoFundMe on her bio too!
Project 562 (Instagram link) - Matika Wilbur from Swinomish and Tulalip Nations. Now, she’s a photographer so this isn’t strictly the kind of art that we’re discussing BUT I feel it’s super important to include her because Project 562 is about photographing Indigenous People BY an Indigenous Person FROM an Indigenous perspective. It’s about reclaiming imagery, narrative, direction, and power that was written for us by the Olde Timey white ethnographers like Edward S Curtis
I have DEFINITELY forgotten people on this list and if any of y’all who know I fuck witcha the long way come across this and don’t see yourself on here, know that I am sorry, that was unintentional I can only blame it on the fact that I’m tired as hell and I got the Brain Rot at the best of times
