We Sing Our Songs

Imagine something so beautiful, so enchanting yet so obvious, that you take it for granted, and you never miss it until it's gone. These precious things are our reservations. In my photo-work I see the inner-beauty, and capture it. Sure it may be beautiful for just a brief moment, yet within that moment, you see colors so vivid, so clear, it's like your eyes have just been opened…and it makes tears, its that beautiful. You feel the sunlight hit your face, the children laughing, the elders talking, even feel the wind playing with your hair. You might say "wow I've never noticed that in my neighborhood" yet it is there, every waking day and every starry night. That is what I do. I see the inner beauty of the reservations, capture it and show my people what we take for granted. I have seen the world like this all my life, and over the past few years I have learned to capture it through the art of photography.

Thanks to my friends and mentors, I now see the many possibilities within my work. I am able to show the hidden treasures that all reservations possess, be it landscapes, children, elders, dogs, or even cars.

Tarah Jean Jackson Ogichidaakweg Founding Mother