Westport, CT – MoCA [Museum of Contemporary Art] Westport announces its Summer Exhibitions featuring the works of contemporary artists Richard Tsao and Sao.

Tsao (born in Thailand, lives in New York City) and Sao (born in Portugal, lives in Southport, CT) both work with color. Either through accumulative (Tsao) or layered washes (Sao), color, pigment and surface are modes in which emotions are conjured, metaphor explored and a sensory experience entices the viewer.

An opening reception will be held on Wednesday, June 28, 2023 from 6 – 8 PM. The event is free for MoCA Members and $10 for the general public. Advance registration is requested on mocawestport.org. 

Richard Tsao: The Constant Gardener

On view June 29 – August 20, 2023

In Richard Tsao’s well-known flood room paintings on canvas and wood, his unrestrained use of color seems to appropriately present itself in just the right balance. He manipulates pure pigment with an alchemist’s instincts in an approach that leaves his work vibrantly colored. With pigment thoroughly encrusting the canvas or wood supports, and with sections of the encrustations sticking out well beyond the supports’ edges, Tsao’s works are less painted than accumulated—they may be years in the making.

Tsao’s Rectangle series of the 1990s does not seem fixed in the physical world. These superb monotypes take full advantage of the possibilities of transferring an oil painting onto paper. In Tsao’s paintings on canvas, the physicality of brilliantly colored paint also becomes architecture; in contrast, these Rectangle works are the distillation of the spirit of color. 

These lushly layered abstract works are closely linked to Tsao’s signature vibrantly colored multi-layered flood roompaintings that evoke the lush nature of his native Thailand. Those familiar with Tsao’s color saturated paintings will recognize his unrestrained use of color in Rectangle works and feel enlivened by the luminosity of the accumulated colors. 

Sao: Inner Landscapes

On view June 29 – August 27, 2023 

Sao’s Inner Landscapes is a collection of large-scale paintings on canvas that showcases the artist’s unique approach to creating meditative spaces. The artist’s compositions use horizontal lines and gestures suggestive of landscapes, while layers of refined colors are applied to create luminous washes. Through this technique, Sao evokes a sense of depth and serenity within each work.

Sao’s keen sensitivity to color relationships and the distilled paint application engage the viewer’s senses and bring about an overall contemplative atmosphere to the paintings. Light within each artwork emanates serenity, spirituality and light–these meditative spaces invite viewers to explore and engage with the paintings on a deeper level, both visually and emotionally.

“Richard Tsao and Sao create a spiritual, joyous experience with each artwork, and present the depths of meanings, feelings and relationships we have with color in our lives and in the world at every moment,” explained Liz Leggett, MoCA Westport’s Director of Exhibitions. 

MoCA’s new summer gallery hours as of June 29, 2023 are Thursday – Sunday from 12 – 4 PM. Docent-led gallery tours are available on Thursdays and Saturdays at 1 PM.

To learn more about MoCA’s Summer Exhibitions and supporting programming, contact Liz Leggett, MoCA Westport’s Director of Exhibitions, at 
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
 or 203/222-7070.

MoCA wishes to thank Expand Media for sponsorship of the Inner Landscapes exhibition.

MoCA Westport also thanks Björn Sao; Jung Lee Sanders, Founder and Director of Art Projects International, NYC; Lilly Wei; and Flynn Thomas for helping to bring this exhibition to fruition.

More About Richard Tsao

Born and raised in Bangkok, Richard Tsao moved to New York in 1976, where he currently lives and works. His 1995 breakout first solo exhibition in New York at the Queens Museum featured Tsao’s color saturated multi-layered paintings described as “chromatically opulent, process-intensive abstraction” by Holland Cotter who reviewed the show in The New York Times. Since the mid-1990s, Tsao has shown extensively in the United States and Asia. Recent solo exhibitions include: Richard Tsao: Green Acres, Art Projects International, New York (2021) and Richard Tsao: Monotypes, Art Projects International, New York (2020). His work is represented in major collections including the Weatherspoon Art Museum, Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts Foundation Collection, and Montefiore Fine Art Collection, New York.

More About Sao

Sao has been an artist and designer for over 30 years. A native of Portugal, Sao studied art and design in Denmark before moving to America to pursue her career. Her paintings and textiles have been exhibited at the Smithsonian Institution’s Renwick Gallery, The Textile Museum, the Corcoran Gallery in Washington DC, the American Center for the Arts in Paris, the Gulbenkian Foundation and the American Embassy in Paris, the Amphitheater in Arles, France, Rhode Island School of Design’s Museum of Art, and at the American Craft Museum, NYC and Museum of the City of New York. She was represented by the Fendrick Gallery in Washington DC and New York. Sao has received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, and was awarded The Washington DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities Award and Women in Design International Award. Sao created costumes for the Gulbenkian Ballet in Lisbon and The London Contemporary Dance Theatre and had her own store in Soho, NYC for ten years, exhibiting both her art and couture fashion line. She has lectured extensively on her art and design, and her book Wearable Art: Innovative Designs for Clothing and Fibers was published by Viking Press in 1980. She currently paints full time at her studio in Southport, Connecticut.

About MoCA Westport

MoCA Westport is a non-profit visual and performing arts organization that has been a cornerstone of the Westport, Connecticut community for over 50 years. In 2019, MoCA Westport underwent a significant expansion in order to bring extensive programming to the local community and greater New York and New England regions.

In addition to hosting contemporary art exhibitions and performing arts events, The Academy at MoCA Westport provides arts classes for all ages.

MoCA Westport is thankful for its generous Supporters, including Bill and Jodi Felton, Joyce Pauker, Eric Bernheim, Gary Cosgrave, Michael Delgass, Paul Efstathiou, Kristin Foster, Derek Goodman, Elizabeth Gorayeb, Tom Hofstetter, Pamela Hovland, Shari Lebowitz, Adam Moore, Deborah Murtaugh, Rachel Pencu, Dogan Perese, Jane Preiser, Oliver Pursche, Elizabeth Strick, Joyce Thompson and Lucien Vita. 

MoCA Westport is also thankful for the dedication of its generous Sponsors, including the Artur and Heida Hermanns Holde Foundation, Inc.; The Bafflin Foundation; Bank of America Museums on Us; Beechwood Arts and Innovation; Wendy and Jacques Bouthillier; The Law Offices of Cohen and Wolf; The Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation; The Cup Bearer; Richard Epstein and Ina Chadwick; Expand Media; Fairfield After Dark; Fairfield County Bank; FLB Law; The Girlfriend Fund; The Hofstetter Baron Group of Wells Fargo Advisors; The Dale & Laura Kutnick Foundation; Marcia Selden Catering & Events; Lance Lundberg and Terry McGuinness; Meadow Ridge, A Distinctive Lifecare Community; The Russell Insurance Agency; Suzanne and Norman Sorensen; SRI Fine Art Services; The Union House; Cindy and John Vaccaro; Wealthspire Advisors; Wells Fargo Bank; Westport Lifestyle; WPKN; MoCA Westport operates with the support of the New England Foundation for the Arts; the Department of Economic and Community Development, CT Humanities, Connecticut Office of the Arts, which also receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Artists from Native Nations across the Colorado Plateau will be in Flagstaff June 24-25 for the Museum of Arizona’s Heritage Festival, offering an unparalleled opportunity to learn about the diverse Indigenous cultures in the region.

The festival first began in 1930 with a focus on the Hopi people, but this year will also include the Acoma, Apache, Diné, Havasupai, Hualapai, Pai, Ute, Yavapai and Zuni. Darvin Descheny, public programs manager for MNA, said the inclusion of all the tribes of the Colorado Plateau give the public a chance to learn about more tribes from the region.

The 2023 market will be located on the beautiful, forested grounds surrounding the museum, with the sacred San Francisco Peaks as backdrop. With an expanded artist market and mainstage performances under tents outdoors, there will be plenty of space and fresh air.

“We are counting down the days to one of the biggest events of the year — the Heritage Festival of Art and Culture,” said Mary Kershaw, executive director and CEO of the Museum of Northern Arizona. “This year the festival will be on June 24 and 25. We moved the date in response to artists and attendees who overwhelmingly agreed that moving away from the busy 4th of July weekend would be better for everyone.”

Based on responses from past festival attendees, this year’s market will be returning to the outdoors, allowing more space to view art and talk with artists. Holding the market outdoors is also safer and allows the museum exhibits to be enjoyed without them being blocked by artists’ booths, the museum said.

More than an art market, the festival is really a celebration put on by the museum offering a glimpse into all that it does to uplift and inform the public about the Native Nations in the region through art, music, lectures, demonstrations and performances. It will take place outdoors through all the parking lots on the museum’s campus.

“I am so excited that this festival brings together Indigenous artists from across the Colorado Plateau, the only such festival that I know of,” Kershaw said. “These artists will all share and celebrate their cultures from under the shade of tents among the tall pines surrounding the museum. In addition to over 100 artists from 10 different tribes, highlights include flute workshops with Aaron White, a presentation by fashion designer Patricia Michaels, as well as performances by the Zuni Water Striders, Dilzehe’e, Apache Singers and Yoyhoyam Hopi Youth Dancers.”

A juried competition will give out awards in 24 categories. While most of the categories will be open to all Heritage Festival artists, some are set aside specifically to recognize excellence in arts specific to the Hopi, Diné, Zuni and Pai.

The timeframe to enter art into the competition be from 9 a.m. – noon June 23, allowing more time than in past years for those who are traveling to enter their art.

Things to know:

Every purchase at the Heritage Festival benefits the artists, who take home 100 percent of their earnings. To help support MNA’s ability to continue to host the festival, donations and festival sponsorship are great options. Anyone interested in sponsorships can email development@musnaz.org

MNA is seeking volunteers for the event. Festival volunteers bring the artists water, give artists breaks, setup and restock refreshments, help with parking, assist visitors with festival information and much more. To volunteer contact msoliday@musnaz.org.

Admission costs have been reduced from 2022 for members and non-members.

Festival hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

More information is available at https://musnaz.org/all-upcoming-events/heritagefestival/.

We have another Polish Christian Rap spotlight written by Rafal Elmer. You can read our first right here & second here! This article is a compilation of a few reviews of CHH artists’ music in Poland.

Slightly edited for clarity and brevity*

CUKIER (Sugar) – NOWE CZASY (NEW TIMES)

Sugar burst onto the Polish Holy Hip Hop scene quite unexpectedly in 2019. The artist caught my attention, as well as the listeners’, with a unique style of selecting musical backgrounds, an uncommon vocal tone, and most importantly, solid skills both in sound production and singing. Warsaw native’s first standout music video was “Kim on jest” (“Who He Is”). Intrigued by that single track, I eagerly awaited the LP to fully assess and possibly appreciate the talent of the capital city’s MC. I wasn’t disappointed.

His initial full-length release, “Kim on jest,” as well as subsequent “Nowe pieśni” (“New Songs”), stand out with delicate, minimalist sound, built upon a solid drum framework and hard-hitting bass.

It’s difficult to find comparable discographies among Polish artists in the contemporary Christian music scene in Poland. Perhaps the only artist who stands out from the broad mainstream with a style similar to Cukier’s is Pharrell Williams. However, it is impossible to group these artists together in terms of both craftsmanship and lyrical interpretation. This rather daring comparison can only serve readers who expect a quick characterization of Sugar’s stage persona in the text and his unique discography.

As for the new releases from the domestic Steeped label (a collective of gospel artists, musicians, sound engineers, and, above all, worship leaders), Cukier’s albums seem to shine the brightest. Let’s not forget that recently, on June 8th, we received his latest LP titled Nowe Czasy (“New Times”) with the hit single “Benny Hinn” as the promotional track for the release.

After an initial listen to the album, I understood that the Warsaw native is making strong progress. On the record, we can find not only the characteristic gospel groove but also offbeat raps, melorecitations, and surprising skits. You should definitely familiarize yourself with Cukier’s work and the accomplishments of the entire Steeped label.

Listen Cukier Below:

ANATOM – AUTONOMIA – THE GREAT AUTONOMY OF POLISH GOSPEL RAP

I awaited Anatom’s second album release with anticipation. It is worth emphasizing that not only due to its similarity to my own worldview (although certainly not identical), but also as a counterpoint to Tau’s marketing dominance in the Christian rap scene in Poland. With a certain degree of curiosity and a hint of defiance, I undertook the review of Anatom’s latest work, the only one to date fully promoted by Bozon Records, the artist who, by the way, left the ranks of the mentioned Bozon label, embarking on an autonomous creative path.

Considering the youthful artistic freshness, considerable technique, persistence, as well as clarity of views, and a well-defined creative path Jakub (Anatom) has shown throughout his career, he has long been a candidate for legitimate releases.

Endowed with stage charisma, vocal talent, and a unique rap style, the rapper proved to be a full-fledged companion for Tau’s artistic endeavors. It is worth mentioning Anatom’s first album, initially intended for a wider audience (then known as B.A.K.U), titled Get to Know Me, which was released by Urban Rec in 2014. Since then, the artist has performed many concerts, visited the USA for the production of a music video, and has repeatedly supported the most popular rappers in Poland, eventually returning to gospel values.

Listen to Anatom Below:

TAU – REMEDIUM: ABOUT AN EXCELLENT ALBUM BY A CERTAIN RAPPER FROM POLAND APPRECIATED BY LECRAE

First and foremost, I would like to emphasize that Tau’s work has always sparked my interest as a rap listener and as a converted individual seeking content that builds spiritual awareness. When Tau, known as Medium at the time, released his first album, Teorie równoległych wszechświatów (Theories of Parallel Universes), through Asfalt Records in 2011, the production didn’t capture my attention. I quickly forgot about the promotional posts for Medium’s debut, as well as the singles that, in my opinion, were filled with boring quasi-philosophy and metaphysics. Looking back, my indifference was also influenced by the fact that the musings presented in the singles, as well as the word choices in the lyrics and their delivery, didn’t align with my aesthetic preferences or religious beliefs.

However, Remedium (Remedy) – Tau’s artistic debut – caused quite a stir among my acquaintances from the underground scene of so-called Christian rap, and it also sparked ideological debates on social media and thematic portals.

The album, on a first listen, eludes objective judgments as it delves into spheres that many perceive as highly personal and unsuitable or even unfit for discourse in the world of phonographic fireworks. Many forum opponents put forth arguments that made fun of Remedium, as well as the artist’s statements and worldview. The significant majority of comments, both virtual and from the so-called neighborhood bench, were favorable towards the album’s content and praised the artistry of the debut.

I won’t be original if I admit that Remedium bears the marks of an outstanding record. Is it safe for an amateur reviewer to evaluate a “work” that has deeply divided rap audiences in Poland so highly? Certainly, there will be voices of opposition to my observations and opinions expressed in this analysis, and authors who are opposed to my worldview will undoubtedly accuse me of favoring Tau. I must now argue my claim by directing your attention, to Tau’s rap-vocal skills and the recognition of his creative endeavors by none other than Lecrae himself, who is one of the guests on the Polish artist’s album.

Listen to Tau Below:

Alright, so here are 3 more Polish Christian Rap artists from Poland. What do you think?

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Artists from Native Nations across the Colorado Plateau will be in Flagstaff June 24-25 for the Museum of Arizona’s Heritage Festival, offering an unparalleled opportunity to learn about the diverse Indigenous cultures in the region.

The festival first began in 1930 with a focus on the Hopi people, but this year will also include the Acoma, Apache, Diné, Havasupai, Hualapai, Pai, Ute, Yavapai and Zuni. Darvin Descheny, public programs manager for MNA, said the inclusion of all the tribes of the Colorado Plateau give the public a chance to learn about more tribes from the region.

The 2023 market will be located on the beautiful, forested grounds surrounding the museum, with the sacred San Francisco Peaks as backdrop. With an expanded artist market and mainstage performances under tents outdoors, there will be plenty of space and fresh air.

“We are counting down the days to one of the biggest events of the year — the Heritage Festival of Art and Culture,” said Mary Kershaw, executive director and CEO of the Museum of Northern Arizona. “This year the festival will be on June 24 and 25. We moved the date in response to artists and attendees who overwhelmingly agreed that moving away from the busy 4th of July weekend would be better for everyone.”

Based on responses from past festival attendees, this year’s market will be returning to the outdoors, allowing more space to view art and talk with artists. Holding the market outdoors is also safer and allows the museum exhibits to be enjoyed without them being blocked by artists’ booths, the museum said.

More than an art market, the festival is really a celebration put on by the museum offering a glimpse into all that it does to uplift and inform the public about the Native Nations in the region through art, music, lectures, demonstrations and performances. It will take place outdoors through all the parking lots on the museum’s campus.

“I am so excited that this festival brings together Indigenous artists from across the Colorado Plateau, the only such festival that I know of,” Kershaw said. “These artists will all share and celebrate their cultures from under the shade of tents among the tall pines surrounding the museum. In addition to over 100 artists from 10 different tribes, highlights include flute workshops with Aaron White, a presentation by fashion designer Patricia Michaels, as well as performances by the Zuni Water Striders, Dilzehe’e, Apache Singers, and Yoyhoyam Hopi Youth Dancers.”

A juried competition will give out awards in 24 categories. While most of the categories will be open to all Heritage Festival artists, some are set aside specifically to recognize excellence in arts specific to the Hopi, Diné, Zuni and Pai.

The timeframe to enter art into the competition be from 9 a.m. – noon June 23, allowing more time than in past years for those who are traveling to enter their art.

Things to know:

Artists, other vendors, staff and volunteers can park at Flagstaff Arts Academy or Coconino Center for the Arts. This will allow the parking lots on both sides of Fort Valley Road to be available for visitors. A shuttle will be available to take artists/vendors, staff and volunteers to and from their vehicles.

Visitors will be able to park in all of the parking available on the east side of Fort Valley Road and in most of the parking lot on the museum side.

MNA is on the Flagstaff Urban Trail System, so it’s convenient to bike to the festival. There are two locations for free, secure bike parking on the museum’s campus. The Mountain Line Route 5 stops directly in front of the museum. A drop-off and pickup area makes it easy for people to take an Uber, Lyft or taxi.

Every purchase at the Heritage Festival benefits the artists, who take home 100 percent of their earnings. To help support MNA’s ability to continue to host the festival, donations and festival sponsorship are great options. Anyone interested in sponsorships can email development@musnaz.org

MNA is seeking volunteers for the event. Festival volunteers bring the artists water, give artists breaks, setup and restock refreshments, help with parking, assist visitors with festival information and much more. To volunteer contact msoliday@musnaz.org.

Admission costs have been reduced from 2022 for members and non-members and can be found at the MNA website.

Festival hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

More information is available at https://musnaz.org/all-upcoming-events/heritagefestival/.

A new paper looks back to the 19th-century Kickapoo Indian Medicine Company to elucidate the harms of cultural appropriation and link them to more modern “New Age” practices.

Sarah Dees pulls several yellow-tinged booklets out of plastic bags. Flipping through one titled “Life Among the Indians,” she points out sections on ceremonies and customs. Toward the back are ads for so-called “Indian remedies,” products like “Kickapoo Indian Sagwa” and “Kickapoo Indian Worm Killer.”

Dees, an assistant professor of American religions at Iowa State University, explains the booklets were part of a larger marketing campaign by the Kickapoo Indian Medicine Company. It was founded in 1881 by two Euro-American men, one of whom claimed a Kickapoo healer had saved his life with “Sagwa” and divulged its secret ingredients.

“While the Kickapoo Indian Medicine Company no longer exists, there are many examples today of companies that appropriate Indigenous cultures to turn a profit,” says Dees. “By examining these historical instances of cultural appropriation, we can better understand more recent forms that have spread over the course of the 19th and 21st centuries and grapple with tough questions about appropriation vs. appreciation.”

In her paper in the journal American Religion, Dees emphasizes it’s common for people to draw from other cultures. But misrepresenting cultures or “hijacking narratives” for economic gain can cause harm, especially when unequal power dynamics are at play. Dees shows how the Kickapoo Indian Medicine Company pushed stereotypes and claimed authority on Indigenous cultures to sell products to non-Native consumers.

She also highlights several ironies. As “Indian remedies” became mainstream, the United States government rolled out policies to restrict Indigenous healing and spiritual practices, which Dees explains are often intertwined.

In the late 1800s, Dees says there was growing interest in “medicines purported to draw on Native American medicinal knowledge.” Part of this was a backlash to the Industrial Revolution and Western medicine’s harsh, sometimes deadly treatments, like bloodletting and mercury compounds.

The Kickapoo Indian Medicine Company advertised its remedies as harmless (because they were all natural) but also powerful in their ability to help people “achieve total well-being.” The company frequently did this by exploiting the image of the “noble savage,” a trope of an Indigenous person uncorrupted by civilization, morally pure and living in harmony with nature.

Dees says one of the reasons this stereotype is problematic is because it suggests Indigenous people must stay in the past to be authentic.

The number of Indian medicine companies declined with the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. But interest in Native American healing practices by non-Native people resurfaced again during the latter half of the 20th century. Dees explains an eclectic set of practices emerged with the New Age movement, which drew from earlier spiritualist ideas (e.g., seances, hypnotism, etc.) eastern religions, old European pagan traditions, and Indigenous ceremonies.

“One of the big critiques of New Age practices is that they’re very individualistic. It’s this idea that you can buy a blessing or pay $1,000 for a sweat lodge for your own personal betterment when Indigenous religious practices are communal and specific to a nation or a subgroup within that nation,” says Dees.

This extraction of spiritual practices makes it harder for Indigenous communities to control narratives about the history and purpose of their traditions. Some also worry that sharing certain ceremonies and sacred sites with outsiders reduces their potency.

In her paper, Dees points to the 1993 Lakota Summit in which 500 members passed the “Declaration of War against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality.” It denounced the long process of “having [their] most precious Lakota ceremonies and spiritual practices desecrated, mocked, and abused by non-Indian ‘wannabes,’ hucksters, cultists, commercial profiteers, and self-styled ‘New Age shamans’ and their followers.”

Whether it’s Victoria’s Secret models wearing headdresses or sage smudge sticks sold on Amazon, companies continue to profit from Indigenous cultures and healing practices. But Dees says there’s also been more interest in finding the line between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation.

“If someone’s curious or unsure, I really encourage going to the source and finding multiple perspectives. You can learn a lot from Indigenous artists, writers, and musicians because they’re going to share stories from their lives and communities that they feel comfortable sharing,” says Dees. “But also, I think it’s good to remember that sometimes there are multiple perspectives. People’s outlooks within one nation may differ greatly.”

She also recommends that people who are interested in Native designs support Indigenous artists rather than buy “Native-inspired” knockoffs.

Currently, Dees is writing a book about a research agency within the Smithsonian Institution that studied Indigenous traditions in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.

She’s also developing a new class, “Religion, Health, and Medicine,” for the fall semester. Geared toward pre-med and pre-health students, the class will focus on connections between religious and healing practices around the world.

“One of my goals is to show how knowledge about history and culture is valuable for the sciences, including health sciences. Providers can better serve their patients when they understand how their religious and cultural backgrounds factor into their approaches to medicine and health,” says Dees.

Many hospitals in the US, including those without religious affiliations, have chaplains and small chapels or prayer rooms. But Dees points out some have also begun to make space for shamans and other religious and spiritual leaders to meet the needs of their patients.

“Many health care practitioners today are emphasizing the need to tend to the whole person, rather than just fixing their broken arm or healing their sickness,” says Dees. “There is a growing recognition of connections between someone’s greater social context, their body, and the mind, and—for practitioners of many religions—their spirit or soul.”

Source: Iowa State University

As the opening guitar riffs rang out at the Levitt Pavilion just outside Denver on Friday night, eager heavy metal fans lined the barrier, cheering on the Arizona band Merciless Indian Savages as they kicked off a new Indigenous comic and arts festival.

The bands performing at the Rez Metal concert were among the many artists participating in áyA Con, an event designed to celebrate indigeneity and showcase Indigenous creators, similar to the Indigenous Pop Culture Expo, or IndigiPop X.

The word “áyA” is from the Lakota language, meaning “to change, to become.” The goal is to expand the notion of what art from Indigenous communities looks like, according to Kristina Maldonado Bad Hand, the director and co-founder of the three-day event.

“We have powwow dancing and we have a lot of our culture presenting, but we have toys up there,” Maldonado-Bad Hand said, motioning to the McNichols Civic Center, which hosted the event. “We’ve got comic books, there’s anime stuff, there’s horror stuff. It’s really broadened.”

Performances ranged from stand-up comedy to poetry to heavy metal.

“People think it’s nonsense, but we’re spitting some knowledge that people are unaware of,” said Corey Ashley, the vocalist for Merciless Indian Savages. “Metal’s the perfect canvas to do that…Natives love metal and we’re no exception to that.”

Along with lyrics about addiction and death, their songs often reference cultural genocide and traumas inflicted upon Indigenous people. One of the songs is titled “Kill Man, Save The Indian,” which references the “White man came across the sea” lyric from Iron Maiden’s “Run to the Hills,” a song about killing Natives.

“So originally everybody knows, obviously, ‘Kill the Indian, save the man,’” Ashley said, referring to the quote by Captain Richard H. Pratt, a soldier in the U.S. Army who wanted Natives to assimilate. “But we’re like, you know, f— that. We want to empower our people and we want to denounce this way of saying it.”

Other bands that played Friday night explored similar themes. The all-female group Suspended, from Albuquerque, N.M., played an instrumental track titled “Murdered and Missing,” after the thousands of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people.

“I had tried to write lyrics several times, but I think it ended up just being an instrumental because I think the music just really speaks for itself,” said Amanda Castillo, a guitarist and vocalist with Suspended.

Ruben Dawahoya, Merciless Indian Savages’s bass player, said he wants to show that Indigenous people belong in the heavy metal space, too.

“We’re just turning the tides, basically, on everybody else, saying that we can evolve and we can do the things that everybody else can,” he said.

That message reached audience members like Chelsea Kaiah, who was head-banging in the front row.

“I think Denver and Colorado in general have a very romanticized version of what Indigenous people look like and how we are and what alternative cultures we participate in,” Kaiah said. “Supporting organizations like this is super important because they’re seeing us for us and what we love and what we support, and the amazing people that create the bands that we listen to.”

After Friday’s concert, the áyA Con event continued into the weekend with several panels and vendors spanning two buildings, with vendors selling things ranging from body care products to theater masks.

Some of the performers new to more traditional Native American art, including dancer Rhyia JoyHeart who is Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone and part of the group United Indigenous Dancers. She performed the Jingle Dress Dance. It’s based on a story where an Indigenous girl fell ill and her relative had a dream about four women that gave instructions on how to make a healing dress.

“[The relative] brought it to their people in a drum ceremony, and they expressed how the dance was, how the dress was to be made, and how it was supposed to be danced,” she said. “Once [the four women] were dancing, the young girl went from laying to sitting to standing to then joining the circle with the women.”

JoyHeart said she’s proud to express her Native traditions and identity through dance.

“There’s so much – so much – beauty in our people,” she said. “We might not be rich in money and wealth, but we’re definitely rich in culture and love. So to be able to have these platforms is truly an honor.”

The festival also featured creatives like Shaun Beyale, a Diné multimedia artist who contributed to Marvel’s Heritage Voices comic book.

“I grew up on Marvel Comics,” he said. “For them to come and reach out to me, you know, that made that little rez boy in me happy because I never thought that would be something possible.”

He also helped design the Marvel character Spider Weaver, based on a protector in Navajo culture called Na’ashjeii Asdzáá. She wears a turquoise necklace and other pieces of cultural attire along with the famous spider logo. Beyale believes it is possible for Indigenous artists to embrace the contemporary without forgetting their ancestral roots.

“We do live in modern society, but at the same time, you know, we do hold onto our culture and we do appreciate that,” he said. “I was just a rez kid that didn’t have electricity. And I had to draw at night with kerosene lamps. And now here I am, getting to work on video games, comic books, and get to promote my culture.

“I think by harnessing the power of technology, we can still move forward without forgetting who we are.”

Danielle Boyer, a 22-year-old Ojibwe engineer, also presented at the festival. She made a talking and singing robot, called a SkoBot, that looks like a tiny, colorful minion with cat ears. It helps preserve four endangered Native languages: Ojibwemowin, Diné Bizaad, Taíno and Apache.

“They are wearable language revitalization robots,” she said. “Basically, they sit on your shoulder, sense motion and help protect endangered Indigenous languages.”

For example, she said, it’d say a phrase like “Boozhoo. Hello,” and ask the child to repeat it back.

She also created the STEAM Connection when she was 18 to help teach Indigenous youth about robotics and provide some building kits for free. It’s served over 800,000 youth so far.

Her idea came out of the discrimination she faced when she tried to join robotics clubs in high school and college. She hopes Indigenous youth will still pursue what they want to pursue, even when these spaces are predominantly white.

“We’ve always been scientists, we’ve always been inventors, we’ve always been creating really awesome things,” she said. “I want to show our students that opportunities are available and that we can create things for our communities basically built by us, for us. And we can be innovators now and forever.”

That’s the main reason Maldonado-Bad Hand wanted to create the convention – to show that Native art and culture is much more than the stereotypes of feathers and ancestors. She shared how when she invited some of her friends to present their anime work at áyA Con, they questioned if anyone would like it.

“I was like…’Why would you question whether you belonged somewhere because you had something that was likable for the rest of the general public and assumed that it wouldn’t be likable for Native people?’” she said.

She hopes it allows participants to bond through their shared connections and expand perspectives of what Native people engage in and enjoy.

“We really wanted to encourage that connection while also sharing our culture,” she said. “You can celebrate over fandoms and everybody can be nerds together and kind of celebrate that way.”

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, the O’Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West in Montana, KUNC in Colorado, KUNM in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Connor Ryan, a pro skier from Denver and member of the Hunkpapa Lakota, was strolling the Outdoor Retailer trade show in Denver’s Colorado Convention Center in 2019 when he came across some mittens that sparked his ire.   

“I was with friends, all of us from different Indigenous groups, and we saw these different patterns and symbology from our cultures in the bead work of these gloves. If it was a Native brand, I feel like we would have known them,” said Ryan, an athlete with Natives Outdoors, a Native American-owned collective of outdoor athletes and designers that advises outdoors businesses working at the intersection of tribal lands and recreation. “We tried to interact with them and they immediately were really defensive and asked us to leave.”

In the four years since, Ryan and other Native Americans have criticized Colorado-based Astis Mittens for cultural appropriation and not employing Native artists to create the intricately beaded designs on the company’s leather-fringed, fur-cuffed mittens. The company’s founders often talked about their idea for their mittens coming from a pair of mittens made by a Cree artist. The word for mittens in the Cree language is “astisak.”

Outdoor sports media brand Teton Gravity Research last month announced it was ending a collaboration with Astis after hearing from athletes and activists like Ryan “that one of our vendors was practicing cultural appropriation,” a statement from the Wyoming-based TGR reads. The company recently trumpeted its collaboration with Astis but has removed the designs from its online store. 

TGR worked with Ryan to develop programs that will support the Shoshone and Arapaho Fish and Game Office, which manages wildlife on the 2.3 million-acre Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. TGR also is contributing to the Sealaska Heritage Institute in Alaska to support the group’s interns studying snow science and avalanche forecasting. 

“We are taking steps to improve our vetting process for retail vendors and endeavor to continually raise the bar for future business practices,” reads a statement from TGR’s founders.

The Cree origin story no longer appears on the Astis website. The company, which is headquartered in Minturn, directs a portion of revenue from mitten sales to the American Indian College Fund. A statement from the fund on the Astis website says the mitten-maker has made a “large commitment” and is providing full-time scholarships for Native American students at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

“With their investment in Native students and communities, Astis is empowering the next generation of Native leaders to create social and economic transformation in Indian Country,” reads the statement on the Astis website. 

The Astis scholarship program started last year and supported three students. The company will be supporting three students again for another year.

Marco Tonazzi joined Astis co-founder Bradford Peterson in 2022 as a partner, replacing a previous owner and helping the company recover from the pandemic slowdown. The Vail Valley entrepreneur with two hotels and retail operations in Minturn and Vail Village is helping Astis “do more to recognize the relationship and inspiration” the mitten company draws from Indigenous cultures, he said in an interview with The Colorado Sun. 

“This is something that is so important to Brad. He has wanted to do this for so long but it was not something he was able to do before. The values were not there in the previous ownership structure,” Tonazzi said. “Our inspiration comes from many areas and the beadwork does not only come from Native communities but it comes from Inuit, Norway, Mexico and other sources. The Native community is an important source of inspiration and we are working to better understand how we can give back and support that community.”

Peterson and Tonazzi said they want to sit down with Native American leaders like Ryan and “talk and learn and understand each other and maybe find out that our differences are not that big,” Tonazzi said. 

“It’s hurtful to be attacked without having an option to have a conversation,” he said. 

Astis’ owners say they are working to hire Native artists who will help the company create designs. That plan is unfolding and the company expects to name specific artists soon, Peterson said. Other brands have done exactly that. Pendleton, the storied blanket-maker in eastern Oregon got its start selling woven wool to Native Americans and now employs Native artists. Pendleton has donated almost $1 million to the American Indian College Fund. 

“We will be changing and we are evolving,” Peterson said. “There are ways to go about things and one way is to shout and make accusations and another is to work together to make change. Everyone has different ideas and different opinions and everyone should have a voice. We are revamping this company and getting in line to be a better company and more well rounded.”

The scholarships are not enough, said Ryan, who has pushed the outdoor industry to better recognize the Native American influence in all aspects of outdoor recreation. 

“Nothing is enough,” he said, describing his uncle, a bead-working artist “who can barely feed himself” and his family. “They sell stolen goods and art from people who have experienced genocide. They perpetuate the genocide of my people and make money off of it. There is no right way to do that.”

Astis has several collaborations with other brands, including Icelantic Skis. 

Icelantic co-founder and CEO Annelise Loevlie said the collaboration is more than 10 years old but they have not ordered anything from Astis in the last few years. She had not heard of the Native American concerns with the mitten-maker, but she said she’s listening now. 

“Honestly this has not been on my radar because it’s not something I have brought into my radar,” Loevlie said. “This is something I’m going to look into though. All of this cases reconsideration of our partnership with Astis and another other brand we are working with. Not in a shameful way, but in a way that encourages growth and understanding. On all sides. I’m learning through this too.”

Raising awareness of Native culture, influence

That’s part of the process, Ryan said. These concerns are raised to get more awareness of how Native American culture shapes outdoor experiences and a deeper respect for that culture and influence.

“There are a lot of great examples coming out but I think it can be hard for folks if they want to do it right. I certainly don’t want the Astis situation to scare brands away from working with Native communities,” Ryan said. “But it’s clear that Astis only works with stolen designs and stolen cultural items.”

There is an upswell of awareness and recognition of the Native roots that anchor American public lands. Offensive slurs have been stripped from landscapes and businesses. Native names are replacing the names of white settlers on peaks, valleys and landmarks across the country as part of a cultural shift and embrace of history that precedes the arrival of settlers. 

Len Necefer founded Natives Outdoors in 2017 to amplify Native stories and artists in the outdoor recreation industry. Today the Native-owned and staffed business works to connect outdoor companies with Native artists and build campaigns around designs that accurately reflect the Indigenous connection with the art.

“I can understand the Native frustration with Astis,” said Necefer, who is Diné.  “It’s something that is going to continue to come up with that company.”

Necefer has spent several years tracking the use of Native American imagery and symbols as part of a larger amplification of cultural appropriation. There are countless brands that have applied Native imagery on products and very few use Native artists in that design, marketing and production process. Necefer’s work helps to elevate Native artists. 

His work with outdoor companies like Smartwool, Eddie Bauer and Bogs includes deals that return 4% to 8% of sales of products with Indigenous art to artists and Native communities. 

“We want to make sure that the story and meaning of the design is not lost,” Necefer said. “Culturally appropriated designs can erase the history and people behind the product.”

Many Native artists struggle to pay bills and most are unable to launch a major business, Necefer said. Native Americans continually rank among the most impoverished demographics on the continent, with low wages and high rates of unemployment. 

Necefer helps brands acknowledge how incorporating Native images without recognizing the artists who created them ignores the history of colonialism and settlers stealing lands from Indigenous people.  

That recognition is increasing as more businesses work directly with Native artists. The challenge with Astis is that the entire product is a Cree design. It’s not just about the beadwork, Necefer said. 

“I see them trying. I’m not going to discount the financial impact scholarships have on Native people’s lives, but they are facing a PR challenge moving forward if they continue to use these mittens and designs that come from the Cree people,” Necefer said. 

Necefer and his peers are not against using Native designs in products. That art can help sustain Native culture, artists and communities. And consumers are demanding that kind of art. 

“If we can help companies build a product that meets that demand and creates a higher price point that makes sure there is a meaningful benefit going back to Native communities, that’s the goal,” Necefer said. “It’s hard with Astis. I think their business model has a fundamental flaw that will always conflict with Native artists.”

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Joe Senungetuk said he really didn’t care if his art sold, but if it stirred a reaction, it was worth it. He hoped his pieces would become time capsules for future generations of Alaska Natives — to help them understand their history and appreciate their culture.

But the Inupiaq artist, who died on May 31, leaves behind many contemporary art fans who loved his carvings, sculptures, and paintings.

Senungetuk lived to be 83, through years of sweeping change for Alaska Natives. He born in a time when people of the Northwest Arctic lived mostly on what the land and water provided. As a child in Wales, he chafed at teachers who punished him for speaking his language and annoyed them by drawing in the margins of his school papers, instead of sticking to the lines.

But he grew up to study art at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the San Francisco Art Institute.

As a young man, he resisted pressure to produce commercial art for tourists, which at the time was the only market available for Native artists. Instead, he used his art to tell stories about his culture and its struggles to survive in a modern world.

His wife, Martha, says his pieces weren’t always pretty.

“There are hoards of people that just want to make pretty pieces,” Martha Senungetuk said. “I know that he was one of a kind, that could not just create something that people admired, but something that will last for hundreds of years.”

Joe Senungetuk had a panoramic view of time, a common thread in his work. One of his pieces still hangs in his living room window — two masks combined to tell a story about colonialism. One face is white and small, suspended over another that is brown and large, which represents Alaska Native people. It’s titled “The White Man Came… and He Hung around… and He Hung Around.”

Senungetuk says the size of each mask reflects the amount of time each group of people has spent in Alaska and the disproportionate power wielded by newcomers to the state.

In an interview with Alaska Public Media’s Lori Townsend Senungetuk put it this way,

“The United States, as a country, started somewhere around 200 some years ago,” Senungetuk said. “And to me that ends up being like the first 16 inches of a football field.”

Senungetuk was an artist immersed in history, a serious student of Indigenous art, the world over. He says those works from early human artists were like a Bible to him. He admired their sophistication, especially that of his Inupiat forefathers, who could, with a few concentric circles, suggest the ripples created when seals poke their noses out of the water.

It was this kind of art, Senungetuk said, that was used to tell stories.

“The original purpose of them were to give birth to an idea, to a dance, to a ceremony that would celebrate new life,” Senungetuk said.

Senungetuk believed modern Native artists could also use art to give birth to ideas. As an artist he used them to make social commentary, like the time he tore a bar stool apart to tell the story of his own battle – and that of fellow Alaska Natives – with alcoholism.

He pulled out the upholstery from a bar stool to fashion a frame for a wooden mask, then used springs from the seat to cover the mask, to make it look like a face behind bars. He called his work: “Imprisoned by State and Self.”

His friend and fellow artist, Jeff Clark, says Senungetuk made a conscious effort to produce art to stand the test of time.

“It’s about trying to figure out how this nonsensical world can make sense to you,” Clark said. “Maybe 200 years later, someone will go, ‘Wow! They really did understand what was going on.’”

Senungetuk was quoted in a magazine as saying, “My art and creating is spiritual to me. And it’s also a bit of resistance.”

“I can just see him smiling ever gently, when he says that with a little bit of resistance,” said Bob Onders, a former president at Alaska Pacific University, who helped to recruit Senungetuk and his wife as Elders in Residence at the university.

Onders says Senungetuk’s art told some harsh truths, but he was always gentle with people.

“I think he was just a peaceful presence, a comforting smile.”

Onders remembers how students seemed to enjoy basking in Senungetuk’s wisdom. He was often seen carving and talking with them about Native culture.

Onders says most people don’t realize that Senungetuk was also a writer. Onders says his book, “Give or Take a Century: An Eskimo Chronicle” is much like his art in how it offers “enduring wisdom.”

Senungutuk finished the book in 1971. It tells the story of his childhood in Wales and the cultural upheaval his family experienced when they moved to the larger community of Nome.

Onders says the book looks ahead to the impact modernization would have on life in Alaska and Native peoples.

“When you think about the time when he wrote that, and what he had been doing prior to that, what he put on paper was incredible,” Onders said. “Even the title speaks to how he thought far beyond his current time frame.”

Senungetuk hoped his book, which includes some of his art, would be a cultural compass for future generations.

“There is a fundamental lesson in knowing about your past, your culture’s past,” Senungetuk said.

Senungetuk said his culture was the inspiration for almost all of his work. And although life was far from smooth, he once said cutting into soft wood with a sharp blade felt like a knife sliding through butter – a feeling he enjoyed all his life.