Dante Biss-Grayson

Artist, Poet, Writer, Sculptor, Weaver, Veteran, Activist, Husband, Father, World Traveler, CEO … and Designer of Fashion, Accessories, Jewelry, Furniture, and Home Goods

By Noelle Bartl

Dante Biss-Grayson (Halleck) (BAAS 2015) grew up in a family of well-known Santa Fe artists. His mother was Gina Gray and his stepfather was Earl Biss. In his youth, Dante studied art in both Santa Fe and Holland. He had the incredible opportunity to hang out in the Santa Fe art studios observing their family friends who were also successful artists like Tony Abeyta, Elizabeth Abeyta, Alan Houser, and Fritz Scholder.

The artist, a member of the Osage Nation, was destined to follow in these same incredible artists’ footsteps, but he could only fulfill this destiny after he departed the creative environment of Santa Fe and experienced life in his own way. After high school graduation, Dante enlisted in the U.S. Air Force with tours in Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Italy.

“I spent 12 years on active duty and as a Department of Defense Contractor assigned to crash, fire and rescue teams and trained in emergency management. My other training included chemical warfare, base defense, search and rescue, as well as specialized rescues such as aircraft, structural collapse and vehicle extrication. Many missions involved traumatic events, car crashes, helicopter crashes, lots of death, being shot at with guns, mortars and missiles.”

Upon returning to the United States, he enrolled at ENMU and earned a bachelor’s degree in Emergency Management and a master’s from Jacksonville State University in Alabama. Dante was soon diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and had a tough time transitioning to civilian life. The veteran became reacquainted with painting to externalize the pain and convey the traumas he experienced.

The artist at work in his studio.

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Instead of self-harming with knives, he began to paint abstract expressionist paintings by scraping generous dollops of pigment across the canvas with the blades. “The abstract images were painted with 22 strokes for each veteran lost, expressing how I felt for each trauma.”

He hopes his work brings healing and “good medicine” to others. His return to creating art to heal from PTSD reawakened Dante’s creative core.

The artist protégé continues to draw and paint with works sold in galleries in Taos, New Mexico and New York, and on his website dantebissgrayson.faso.com

His talents continue to evolve and expand, including starting a fashion line and establishing a family-owned fashion house in Taos. Dante is the founder, CEO and Fashion Designer, while his wife Yanti is the Premier of their Sky-Eagle Collection Fashion House.

Dante’s garments were featured during his Sky-Eagle Collection Runway Show at New Work Fashion Week.

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“I knew from my emergency management and multi-tasking background that I needed help producing a fashion brand. As the premier, Yanti directs, delegates, and oversees all our talented team members, moving parts, marketing, inventory, etc. We make a great team. Together, Yanti and I stay innovative and continue to map our strategic plan. We have a three to ten-year vision for our Sky-Eagle Collection Fashion House.”

Their collection at skyeaglecollection.com offers a wide range of high-end products, including women’s clothing, trench coats, belts and accessories, jewelry, and high heel shoes. The creative couple has solidified plans to roll out multiple brands, a media company, dishware, home décor, and furniture. Their Sky-Eagle Collection is getting noticed. In February 2022, Dante’s fashion line was invited to the London Fashion Week, and this past February, the Taos-based fashion house was invited to New York Fashion Week.

The designs are contemporary and modern, hoping to empower new Native warriors who walk in the modern world. Dante acknowledged, “We are proud to be a part of the movement to bring Native voices to spaces that have not traditionally been heard and to inspire the future. We remind all that We are Still Here!”

Actor Amber Midthunder wearing one of Dante’s designs at the Los Angeles premiere of the movie “Prey.”

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Actor Amber Midthunder wore Sky-Eagle Collection’s floral embroidered dress at the Los Angeles Premier of the movie “Prey” (a sequel to the Predator movies). Dante even has movie credits for special effects and had a special background role in “Killers of the Flower Moon” directed by Martin Scorsese, currently in post-production. “The movie is about my tribe, the Osage. I did live painting on set with the camera focused on me for the footage.”

Academy Award-Winning American Director Martin Scorsese and Dante wear matching Sky-Eagle Collection blazers during New York Fashion Week in February. Dante has film credits in Scorsese‘s upcoming film “Killers of the Flower Moon.”

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His next runway show will be in Cannes, France, during the Cannes Film Festival in May. Dante is patiently waiting to learn if “Killers of the Flower Moon” will be shown at the film festival.

The fashion line, founded in 2019, is named after their fouryear-old daughter Ella Sky Eagle. Dante and Yanti want a better world for their daughter and all Native Americans. They incorporated their passion for giving back and lifting others up into their business mission. They strive to build awareness and inspire action for improving the lives of Native Americans in both the United States and Canada focusing on access to electricity and water and especially the alarming statistics of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) epidemic.

By broadening these difficult conversations like MMIW to more audiences, donating a portion of their revenue, and expanding the visibility of Native American designers by organizing a fashion week for 20 Native American Designers from across North America, they are bringing these problematic issues to a larger audience.

This former ENMU Greyhound has many years of creative inspirations archived in his numerous sketchbooks and journals that have yet to become a reality in his fashions or other distinctive collections. Dante continues to discover new inspirations every day. The future is ever-expanding for Dante, Yanti and their daughter Ella Sky Eagle as their family-owned fashion brand and diverse business ventures continue to evolve.