Bread Crumbs, Vinyl, Metallic Thread

Sewing, Assemblage

61” x 75” x 2”

2022

Rope, Wire, Stockings, Thread, Ribbon

Textile Assemblage

3.5’ x 5’

2021

“A belly tied in knots with the red flags that you so delicately place but insisted did not exist.” - Maggie Thompson

Fabric, Plexi-Glass

Quilting, Laser Cutting

2019

Swallow depicts the interior lining of an esophagus through through a series of photo transfers on to sheer fabric. Each square is sewn in to a pocket, filled with laser cut modules of cancer cells. Back lit with LED lights, the piece speaks to the discovery of cancer quietly growing inside the body.

Wool, Rayon

8 Harness Floor Loom, Tapestry Weaving

3 Panels: 6' x 3'

2013

Family Portrait represents blood quantum, the percentage of Indian blood, of my parents and myself. My Dad is mostly Native American and my Mom is Irish and German. Even though I am mostly "white" I still identify myself as being Native American, but why? In this piece I am exploring and questioning ideas and systems of "authenticity."

Cotton Fabric, Ink

Screen Printing

3' x 12'

2013

There is a great deal of stereotypical Native American imagery seen in mainstream commodity and fashion today. Much of what is represented is extremely generic, yet to the greater public, often perceived as "Authentic Indian." The imagery is utilized generally references a notion of a culture from the past, something nostalgic or prehistoric - not one that is very much alive today.

Red Plastic

3D Printing

Approx: 10cm x 10cm each

2013

Many people assume that all Native Americans are the same, that we all wore headdresses and lived in tipis. When in reality, this is far from true. There is tremendous diversity in material culture, life ways, artistic, and cultural practices represented throughout over 500 tribal nations. These cookie cutters represent the way mainstream representations of Native American cultural icons and designs reinforce misinformed generic ideas of "Indian" or what it means to be Native.

Rayon, Wool, Jump Rings, Beer Caps

Machine Knitting

Small

2013

Native American iconography and stereotyping has made a major appearance in fashion over the past few years. The question of what is being translated appropriately has become a huge discussion. This dress is inspired by the jingle dress and exotic dance wear. The dress becomes culturally seductive touching on ideas of cultural prostitution. 

Mohair, Cotton, Rayon

Jacquard Weaving

4.5' x 5.5'

2012

There are many questions that I have never asked my Dad. In many ways his life has been a mystery to me. From the simplest details about him all the way through stories of our family history, much has gone unsaid. Working on this piece has allowed me the time to process important conversations before the opportunity is past. The layering of images in this work is intended to create a feeling of nostalgia. It is an act of uncovering and discovering family stories that I have not yet heard.

Beer Caps, Jump Rings

Metal Work

3' x 5'

2013

The pattern in this work is inspired by traditional Plains style beadwork. The beer caps represent the association of alcoholism to Native Americans and how it has become embedded into people's perceptions of our culture and history.

Vinyl

Photography, Weaving

9' x 11'

2015

This piece reflects my experience of dealing with depression and anxiety since losing my Dad. Grief is a highly personal experience in that every individual’s process in unique. The woven image is composed of two self portraits; by weaving these photographs together the two images become distorted in order to demonstrate a heightened experience of hysteria and anxiety, overwhelming the viewer.

Hospital Blankets

Sewing

5' x 6'

2016

This piece is made out of hospital blankets where I sewed into the fabric, manipulating the folds of the blankets. After my Dad received the “Whipple” procedure for pancreatic cancer, I was sitting next to him in the hospital room and he was just coming to when he stated that he could see faces in the blankets; that they were family members and that they were mourning. The folds in these blankets are made to take on the shapes of the faces of mourning family members, replicating my Dad’s experience in the hospital after his surgery.

Vinyl, Metallic Thread, Beads

Sewing, Beading

3.5' x 7.5'

2016

This piece is a star quilt made out of vinyl that is sewed in to the shape of a body bag. It was inspired by my experience of watching the coroners come in carrying a simple, solid colored bag the night my Dad passed away. After this I was compelled to create my own body bag as an act of saying goodbye and as a way to honor my Dad. Although the body is only carried in this bag for a small moment in time I couldn’t bare the thought of him being in something so plain and simple. The colors of the star are based off of a star quilt my Mom made my Dad when they were first married that she made with the intentions of For Love Alone. The beads add a decorative quality to the piece and the arms of the star wrap around the bag as a way of wrapping and holding a body in that love.

Foam Core, Fabric

Photography, Assemblage

8' x 10'

2016

When I was in college my Dad told me to look at the sunset whenever I missed him and now it is something I try to do in my daily practice. Since losing my Dad, one of my biggest fears has been of forgetting; forgetting all those special moments and details. 

This sunset is a photograph I took the summer after his passing, it is broken down in to triangles or “fragments” representing the fear of having my memories fade and separate. The triangles are glued on to a shear piece of fabric creating a blanket or sort of “comforter”. These memories come back to me the strongest when I am trying to fall asleep. This piece symbolizes my way of sleeping under all of my memories.