Visual Nation

Indigenous student voices from the now-USA are in a particularly privileged position to spot the various effects of colonialism, environmental destruction, Indigenous solidarity, multiracial identity, and pop culture. These themes and more are explored by Haskell Indian Nations University student artists in Visual Nation.

This digital catalogue represents just a sample of the artwork featured in this semesterʟs art exhibition, which included over 50 works ‒ paintings, photography, ceramics, video, digital, sculpture, weaving, and more. Discover new stories and creative processes as the artists present their visions of community, solidarity, joy, resistance, anger, fear, loss, and thought-provoking moments of reflection.

For more artwork, visit our Instagram page @hinuarts.

Cover image: Cora Sibley (Tlingit) Healing Hands (detail), digital drawing, 2020.

Wacey McClure Bitterroot Salish, Blackfeet, Dakota Sioux

Stop 2020 Repurposed sign and spray paint I made a Salish language stop sign to help transform colonized space into Native space. Like Edgar Heap of Birds and Steven Paul Judd, I wanted to indigenize an item we see every day to make it more relevant to me and my people. So, I found a stop sign on the side of the road that was most likely hit by a car. I painted over the English word with red spray paint, and then traced the Salish letters with pencil. I then made a stencil out of painterĘźs tape and finally spray painted the letters white and installed it near my home.

Nakooma Pelt Navajo

Untitled 2020 Acrylic paint and fabric In various tribes, red is known to be the only color the spirits see. By wearing red, we can call back the missing spirits of our women and children so we can lay them to rest.

The data is incomplete, but as of 2016, there have been 5,712 incidents of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

Not many people know about this outside of the Native community. I created a mask and photographed myself to represent the silence and the lack of awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in the United States and Canada. I chose this subject because, even as a Native American woman, I did not know about these numbers. I want to amplify the empowering women, protecting women, and making sure that they are heard and not ignored.

Damian Cling Navajo

Untitled 2020 Pen on paper This is a drawing of myself in stormtrooper armor. I grew up with Star Wars and I love the way the armor looks. I added tiny designs to help communicate which tribe I belong to. The hair is done up in a bun, the traditional Diné style. A turquoise necklace around my neck symbolizes our connection to the Holy People. A mountain design on the chest piece and shoulder represent where Iʼm from, Dookʼoʼoosłííd.

This mountain is located in Flagstaff, Arizona. The zigzag design is one that I and other crosscountry runners used in high school. I did my best to draw it to look like those old drawings and photographs of Native Americans.

Rob Beaulieu III Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians

Moonlight 2020 Gif Windy spring night, IĘźm sitting in the truck as the night is young as curfew strikes at 10 P.M. The cars stop coming in but we keep our eyes open for bears.

While we stare at the moon the good is happening & the bad is happening both at the same time. ItĘźs an ongoing process.

Both reflect off the grass & water.

Jack Wingo Cherokee Nation

Stickball Spirit 2020 Acrylic and spray paint on canvas I was inspired by Oscar Howe's style of painting and the game of stickball (Anetsodi). Stickball is one of the elements that keeps our tribe's culture alive and thriving. The swirling, changing colors open up a portal into the world of stickball, representing life's circular motion, the intense physical movement, and the endurance of the game. The white dots gliding around the players represent the ancestors of recent and of old who are playing with them, backing up each player with power from the spirit world.

Lauryn Clown Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe

Mithwówaš'ake/I have strength 2020 Yarn and t-shirt I have always enjoyed working with my hands, so I decided to take on embroidery. It is not the best work, but you have to start somewhere, and it is work that I am proud of. In this piece, we see simulated ledger paper and an elderly man standing behind a young woman. Itʼs me and my grandpa.

Above them is the word “Mithwówaš'ake,” Lakota for I have strength.

Bernadine Stewart Oglala Lakota Nation

Tanning A Buffalo Hide 2020 When we received the buffalo hide, it was already partially dried with salt. It was 8 feet wide by 10 feet in length. It first had to be rehydrated in a large amount of water, and there was a lot of flesh and fat still on it and knife cuts.

But my son wanted to learn how to tan a hide, so we decided to do it together. I have tanned many deer hides and made my buckskin, but never a buffalo hide.

In February, we soaked the hide in water to rehydrate it for a few days. My nephew built a frame to drape the hide onto and we could scrape the flesh and fat off using a special modern fleshing tool. This hide is very heavy when itʼs wet and it takes a lot of arm work to scrape and move the hide around. After the fleshing process, the whole hide is washed. To wash the hair we used regular shampoo. Then after thoroughly rinsing, we had to build a huge wood frame to hold the weight of the hide. The hide was laid on a clean tarp on the ground, and I cut ¾” slits every 6" around the hide. Then I laced it with a rope to tie it to the frame. It had to be pulled equally from top to bottom, making sure the spine was straight. The sides also had to be stretched equally.

Then we had to wait a few days for it to dry. On rainy days I covered the hide with a tarp.

One night it had rained and became very windy. The wind picked up the frame and slammed it to the ground. When I checked on it in the morning, part of the tarp came off and the hide got wet. Part of the frame was also broken and had to be rebuilt. I thought thatʼs it, there are too many things happening here. Iʼm giving up. And then I thought, how did my ancestors deal with situations like this? I had to have another plan. So, I unlaced the whole hide from the frame so it could be fixed, and then I laced it all back onto the frame.

The next day I was walking the dog and slipped on one of those round sticker balls that fall from the trees. I thought I had just knocked the wind out of me as I fell on my left side. I was more embarrassed about falling. But the next day I was using my inhaler in the morning and I couldnʼt take a breath without my chest hurting. The pain was overwhelming, so my son drove me to the VA Hospital ER in Topeka. They saw my bruised side and did a CT Scan. Nothing was broken, but I had bruised my left ribs. I couldnʼt work on the hide. I was in so much pain every time I moved. I had been given strong pain medication, but it knocked me out for hours each day. Once again, I thought Iʼll have to give up on the hide. I even worried that I wouldnʼt be able to finish my classes as I fell behind. But then I thought, I just canʼt sit here and do nothing! What would my ancestors have done in a situation like this? So, I made some coffee and hot chicken broth and started to move around regardless of how I felt. I quickly started to feel better, as long as I kept moving around more each day. I started staying awake longer during the day and accomplishing tasks made me feel good. So, my “get up and go” I thought had got up and left, came back! Iʼve worked on the hide as much as I can, itʼll take longer to finish, but it will get done.

During the 19th century, when our people were put on reservations and couldnʼt hunt deer or buffalo, they couldnʼt tan hides to make clothes or buffalo robes or tipi covers. A way of life had stopped. But the process was saved by many Natives who handed down the process. This is why I chose to tan a buffalo hide: to show my son how to do it. Iʼd like to see more Natives tanning hides and enjoying work and feeling the accomplishment of the finished product. When I work on the hide and my hands and arms are tired, I think of my ancestors and how much work they put into a hide. As I work on the hide, the only sound I can hear is my friend teaching his sons to sing Lakota songs on the drum. Itʼs nice to hear these familiar sounds as Iʼm working. It keeps me working longer.

Cora Sibley Tlingit

Healing Hands 2020 Digital art I use my computer to create images of many tribal women from different cultures, all with the same red face. I must bring attention to our missing and murdered sisters. Those hands with eyes are known as “healing hands� in my tribe. They fill space, repeating forever, and help to heal the wounds of every tribe.

Glennee Gunville Cheyenne River Lakota

Šùnkawakán (horse) 2020 Acrylic on canvas I wanted to paint in Dorothy Dunnʼs Studio Style because it evokes a history with the American landscape and Native American sacred symbols. I have been raising bucking horses with my family my whole life. It is our heritage. Our horses mean the world to us ‒ each horse has its significance to people who have passed on, or of being the offspring of a famous horse. My papa Harlan Gunville was the first Native American stock Contractor in the PRCA (Pro Rodeo), taking award-winning bucking horses the NFR (National Finals Rodeo).

This Painting is a memorial to our strong family ties and to our powerful connection with horses.

Colin Wauqua Ho-Chunk, Comanche

Real N8ve Snapback 2020 New era snapbacks from the Washington Redskins and Kansas City Chiefs, wood, metal hanger, cloth.

I created a readymade monster out of an amalgam of NFL mascots. This art piece represents the ugly side of these franchises and merchants who condone this kind of disrespect towards Native Americans and our cultures. To prepare for this piece, I researched perspectives on racism and mascots in the United States, and became interested in the concept of “playing Indian.” I also appreciated Jason Lujanʼs work that highlights the US militaryʼs appropriation of Native names.

Adrienne Keene also inspired me with her essay, “I eat stereotypes like you for breakfast.”

Alyssa Meyer Cherokee

Untitled 2020 Markers and pens on paper I decided to recreate a work of art by Steven Paul Judd. I took his “Not For Sale� piece and placed it into a new setting: a city scene where the buildings make the American flag. For the stars, I used crosses like many other Natives have done. I also added a worn-down tent.

I want to point out that the American flag is not our flag. It signifies violence towards Native Americans.

Dee Hernandez Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation

The Hernandez Label 2020 Digital Collage We label many things, but nothing is as powerful as what we label ourselves. IĘźm interested in how tattoos become literal labels on our bodies. I gathered some of the tattoos that my indigenous family members have and digitally wove them into a kind of rainbow flag. In the background of the many tattoos are my mom and uncle's shared tattoos of our tribal logo.

Kevion Edwards Seminole

Crazy Love 2020 Colored pencil, book I found ledger art very interesting because of all the different ideas you can add to a single sheet of used paper. This ledger drawing is on a page from a book I received as a gift my freshman year of high school. The book is “Crazy Love� by Amir Abrams. The text on the page helped me decide what to draw. I used a lot of traditional Indigenous symbols that stand for promise, harmony, and love.

Sonwai Wakayuta Hualapai-Hopi

Not Enough Shit (detail) 2020 Glass bottle, acrylic paint The day I got a new skateboard deck I also got a DUI. That night I snapped and thrashed my old deck in a parking lot.

Responding officers asked, “How much have you had to drink?” I answered with “Not enough shit!”

I recreated this moment by remixing two Fritz Scholder paintings: Hollywood Indian of 1973 and Monster Indian of 1968. Replacing the shotgun with a skateboard still portrays the destructive “savage” behavior Hollywood associates with Native Americans, only this time it's for real. Using a beer bottle as my canvas also points to Scholderʼs “real Indian” subject matter ‒ he often painted Natives drinking and being ugly.

I relate to both images because they feel angry, and I am still angry with myself.

Chyonne Buterin Aleut Tribe of St. Paul Island

Reality 2020 Colored pencil and pen on paper From the realistic details and beauty of Kent Monkmanʼs work, to the disturbing yet satisfyingly “ugly” pop art paintings of Fritz Scholder, Iʼm inspired to visually express my own perspective. This is a drawing of my body. The stretch marks are golden to represent growth and loss. Iʼm inspired by artists who show realistic bodies in their work, rather than the aesthetic society wants to see.

Talan Jack Tlingit/Athabascan

No tribe is better than the other; we are all beautiful, we are all strong 2020 Photographs I decided to photograph different ladies from different tribes in Alaska.

Since attending Haskell, I realized that because there are so many lower 48 Natives and not many Alaskans, many students donĘźt know much and about Alaska Natives. Because of this, I feel that we arenĘźt appreciated as much. No one in particular made me feel this way, it was the fact that in every class IĘźve taken it feels like only 20 minutes is devoted to learning about Alaska Natives. I felt I needed to show that between every Native American, no one is better than the other.

We all are strong and beautiful in our own way.

Kathryn Tso Hopi, Cochiti Pueblo, Navajo

Rez Bros 2020 Acrylic and paint pen on coffee cups

Dutch Bros Coffee is mostly a West Coast franchise but it is also located in the border towns next to several indigenous reservations in Arizona. I used their cup design to practice Native intervention. IĘźm inspired

by Steven Paul Judd and his transmotional assisted readymades. Judd sometimes takes simple images from popular culture and creates a reimaged idea of what it means to be Indigenous in the 21st century. I replaced the colored lines with arrows and pipes‒symbols for hunting and other necessities. I also replaced the windmill lighthouse with a tipi, a different kind of lighthouse, knowing that many tribes still use tipis for ceremonial and housing purposes. I leaned towards this type of art to give humor to those who are Native and Non-Native Americans, and also because I am a loyal Dutch Bros customer.

Jake Bokori Lovelock Paiute Tribe

Essa 2020 Pen and pastel on paper Essa is Paiute for wolf. I drew inspiration from Wo HahĘźs famous ledger drawing Between Two Worlds and the landscape from my home in Nevada. The shape of the drawing is the state of Nevada purposefully drawn backwards. The arrows in the wolfĘźs back represent all the things that try to kill or take away indigenous rights but never actually bring us down. The composition is also meant to reflect on how change is inevitable, just as the sun rising and setting every day is inevitable.

Waniyetu Irving Oglala Lakota and Prairie Band Potawatomi

Everyday Is Earth Day 2020 Watercolor, pen, photograph, plastic flowers This portrait is a reminder that if we take care of Mother Earth, she will take care of us. We are in each other. I was inspired by Christi Belcourtʼs painting “Water Song.” Belcourt is an artist but also an activist and environmentalist.

Deborah Lyons/Enaemaehkuhkiw Menominee Nation

Walking in Two Worlds 2020 Colored pencil on paper I try to practice my traditional values every day but I often find myself confused. My drawing is inspired by ledger art and Kiowa artist TC Cannon's painting “Soldiers,” which depicts a half-native, half-Custer person. The image inspired me to do my own piece of walking in two worlds. We see a young woman, half of her in traditional clothing on her reservation, and the other half in her contemporary clothing in the city.

Aaliyah Provost Oglala Lakota

Happy Life 2020 Fabric, ribbon, thread, sewing machine I made this ribbon skirt because I always wanted to learn how to sew. I wanted to make one of my own ribbon skirts so that I could make more in the future for others not only for myself. I really enjoyed making this skirt even though at times it was challenging. I understand now how much work goes into skirt making and respect those that make them.

The yellow represents finding joy in life again, and the ribbons represent the journey to contentment. I was inspired by Caroline Parker, who is featured in our textbook. Parker made her own outfits and was a very skilled artist by the age of 19. She inspired me because in my family there arenĘźt a lot of artists and I hope to change this. Another inspiration I had while making this skirt was my great grandmother. I know we were supposed to get our inspiration from an artist we looked at in class but I felt like this helped me a lot with this project. I came across a picture that my grandpa has of my great grandmother and it's her in full regalia along with a few other outfits that she made herself. I was in awe because the pieces are amazing and so beautiful. I got to share a few words with my family on how great of an artist she was, and this was a very special moment to me. I hope to make pieces like hers one day.

Kylie Kookesh Tlingit, Inupaiq

Box in a Box 2020 Ravenstail weaving (front and back) I was inspired to weave because we focused on Ravenstail and Chilkat weaving in class, and I always wanted to weave a bag. My aunt, Pauline Duncan, taught us - her nieces, nephews, and grandchildrenhow to do Ravenstail weaving, which is the precursor to Chilkat weaving. It's a bold, black and white design with usually a little bit of yellow. This design is called “box within a box� because it references bentwood boxes stacked inside each other.

Sam Riding In Pawnee, Seminole, Creek, Shasta, Tututni

Moccasins 2020 Deerskin hide, Czech size 11 beads, sinew I chose to make a pair of moccasins to honor my late grandmother. In our way, when someone passes we are responsible for making sure all their possessions are taken care of so their spirit can continue their journey. The materials I used came from her collection. My grandmother was an artist and loved her people and family, so I wanted to continue the family tradition of making things. While making these I bled a few times on the hide in various parts and to me, it made these moccasins a spiritual representation of not only my own bloodline but my role as a knowledge carrier for our next generations.

Jordan Qualls Apache

Untitled 2020 Colored pencil This drawing is about mother nature and how humans are changing what she created.

The giver of live if being taken advantage of.

Nature tells us a lot but we havenʟt been listening. We forget what goes on outside our phone screens and office doors. This pandemic has made me appreciate what Iʟve bene missing out on ‒ the fresh air, the warm sun, the ground. Even with everything everyone has been going through, I am happy that many people have turned back to nature.

Robyn Olivar San Carlos Apache Tribe

Untitled 2020 Crayon and pen on paper My inspiration came from Votan Henriquezʼs mural on the side of the Minneapolis American Indian Center. I like how he juxtaposes a black and white image with a colorful background. I “zentangled” my name, cut it out, and placed it on top of the colorful and chaotic melted wax painting. The name, which reflects how some people see me (in black and white) covers up the “true colors” of who I am.

To get to the colors, you have to take off the letters.

Denali Stigall Mescalero Apache

The Beauty of Resilience (detail) 2020 7”x 3.5”x 1.75” Press-on nails, glass seed beads, turquoise beads, magazine, cardboard.

Beaded in five days, approximately 1.5 hours per nail, secured with e3000 glue and precision tweezers.

I decided to use nails as my base for beadwork because Iʼve been a nail technician for a few years, and I was inspired by the intricate nail art Iʼve seen at nail competitions. I also decided to use nails because I and other black women take great pride in our beautiful nails and we see them as a way to express ourselves and our femininity. The background is a scene out of a magazine of a forest being torn down for logging. I chose this image because I felt like it represented how land and resources have been taken from Natives, but even through the adversity weʼve remained strong, and can rebuild whatʼs been taken from us.

Mary Bighorn Assiniboine/Sioux

Untitled 2020 Colored pencil on paper The Medicine Wheel, sometimes called the Sacred Hoop, has been utilized for ages by different Native American clans for health and healing. It can take a wide range of forms ‒ a ritual object, a work of art like a sculpture or a painting, or a large structure built on the land. Movement through a Medicine Wheel normally is in a clockwise, roundabout or "sun-wise" heading. This assists with lining up with the powers of Nature, like gravity and the rising and setting of the Sun. Various clans decipher the Medicine Wheel in unexpected ways. The division into four parts represents the Four Directions but also the four unmistakable colors: Black, Red, Yellow, and White, which all have more meanings such as the stages of life, the seasons, the elements of nature, the human races, and so on.

In my life, the volleyball represents health and healing. It is medicine, which is one reason I drew it as a medicine wheel.

Melena Potack Lac Courte Oreilles

Endless Search 2020 Acrylic on canvas We see a simple Ojibwe floral pattern placed on each of the corners of a black painted canvas. In the middle are two different red handprints reaching toward each other. This piece intends to bring more awareness to our missing and murdered Indigenous women.

I often find myself creating new Ojibwe floral patterns for future projects. This specific one had come to me one day in class. I wondered what its purpose would be as it stuck with me. It felt right to place the pattern in each corner of the canvas to symbolize our never-ending search for our people. We will continue to search every corner of mother earth looking for our women. The handprints are my mother and younger sibling, which symbolizes how this tragedy affects all ages.

Mateo A. Sanders Creek, Thlopthlocco

Human Effigy Pipe 2020 Acrylic Iʼm inspired by the ancient Adena and Hopewell artists who made effigy pipes more than two thousand years ago. These artists also cut sheets of mica and copper coming from the Appalachian Mountains and Lake Superior region and shaped them into birds and human effigies. These works were buried in mounds with dignitaries and “giants.” This painting is my tribute to the artist who made the Adena human-bird effigy pipe.

Odessa Begay Navajo

Unidentified Indians 2020 Colored pencil, graphite, lighter The half-cut Native Woman is tearing. This drawing is about racism. The Google images get lost in colors and in the patterns of the face. I wanted to depict conflict, make it dark, bright, and bold.

Google is the crown, and the edges of the drawing are burnt and uneven, dramatic, and suggest that these images are like ashes or dust blowing away.