YELLOWSTONE – The Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center has opened to the public for the season.
Located in the Old Faithful area, the center is a space where Indigenous artists, scholars and presenters from the 27 associated Tribes of Yellowstone National Park directly engage with visitors through demonstrations and discussions. Now in its second year, the center is a partnership between the National Park Service and Yellowstone Forever, with Tribal consultation.
During the 2023 season, 37 presenters from 18 associated Tribes will engage with Yellowstone visitors through formal and informal education. Presentations will include photography, beadwork, moccasin making, dancing, storytelling, quillwork and more.
“Many Tribal Nations have a continuous presence in the area now known as Yellowstone National Park,” said Alyssa McGeeley, Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center coordinator, and member of the Muscogee Tribe from Oklahoma. “The Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center is a space where Indigenous people from the 27 Tribes associated with the park share the resiliency of their people with visitors from all over the world as artists, educators and culture bearers.”
The Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center will remain open through Oct. 14. The center is centrally located between the Old Faithful Lodge and the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center.
Tribal Heritage Center Schedule
Below find a full list of 2023 presenters, including each presenter’s Tribal affiliation and art form.
5/17-5/21 Iva Moss | Northern Arapaho | Land education-soil watercolor painting with Guest Presenter Adrienne Vetter (20-21)
5/17-5/21 Mike Redman | Northern Arapaho
5/20-5/21 Colleen Friday | Northern Arapaho
5/23-5/26 Susan Stewart | Crow | Buffalo Tallow, beading, and contemporary Native art
5/28-5/30 Austin Kasto | Standing Rock Sioux | Beadwork, ribbon skirt making, regalia making, moccasin making, and dancing
6/1-6/4 Theresa White | Coeur d’Alene | Nature photography
6/6-6/10 Alexandra Romero | Oglala Lakota | Beadwork, quillwork, and contemporary Lakota Style clothing
6/12-6/15 Sylvia Peasley | Colville Reservation | Traditional and contemporary rawhide art
6/17-6/19 Andrea Lopez | Little Shell Chippewa | Beadwork and storytelling
6/17-6/19 Mandi Rambayon | Little Shell Chippewa
6/17-6/19 Maya Lopez | Little Shell Chippewa
6/21-6/23 Suzanne Presgrove | Eastern Shoshone Northern Arapaho | Beadwork and sewing
6/25-7/2 Kelly Lookinghorse | Oglala Lakota | Lakota singing, beadwork, and dreamcatchers
6/30-7/2 Kaulouyah Lookinghorse | Oglala Lakota | Contemporary multi-media Native art
7/4-7/8 Samantha Vulles | Blackfeet, Salish and Kootenai | Traditional games, beadwork, ribbon skirts, and contemporary designs
7/10-7/13 Gwendolyn Carter | Nez Perce | Traditional foods demonstration
7/15-7/18 Allison Sage | Northern Arapaho | Northern Arapaho songs presentation
7/20-7/22 Jim Trueax | Little Shell Chippewa | Watercolor painting, Native American dancers
7/24-7/28 Mason Runs Through III | Assiniboine | Storytelling, visual art, and drumming
7/24-7/28 Joseph Runs Through | Assiniboine | Beadwork, quillwork, and drumming
7/30-8/5 River Webb | Nez Perce, Meskwaki, Potawatomi | Beadwork, ribbonwork, dress making, and storytelling
7/30-8/5 Red Miskozi Mair | Little Shell Chippewa
8/7-8/16 Evans Flammond Sr. | Oglala Sioux, Rosebud Sioux | Hide painting and ledger art
8/18-8/20 Luke Black Elk | Cheyenne River Sioux | Traditional plant gathering practices and uses
8/22-8/27 April Martin | Northern Cheyenne | Storytelling and sweetgrass
8/29-9/2 Harry Slickpoo Jr. | Nez Perce | Nez Perce language and oral tradition storytelling
9/4-9/8 Tina Williams | Blackfeet | Beadwork, ribbon skirts, and jewelry making
9/10-9/13 Harmony Straub | Oglala Lakota | Skirt making and beadwork
9/15-9/18 Willy and Debbie Lamere | Shoshone–Bannock | Flint knapping, beadwork, and quillwork
9/20-9/23 Tawny Cale | Spirit Lake, Standing Rock Sioux, Turtle Mountain Band of the Chippewa | Indigenous empowerment through beadwork
9/25-9/27 Darrah Perez | Blackfeet, Eastern Shoshone, Northern Arapaho | Storytelling, short documentary, and traditional poetry
9/29-10/1 Kinsley WalksAlong | Northern Cheyenne | Quillwork
10/3-10/6 Alisha Fisher | Northern Cheyenne | Traditional native games and native dance outfits
10/8-10/14 Patti Baldes | Northern Arapaho | Photography and Buffalo Box
The Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center is made possible through funding from Yellowstone Forever, the National Park Foundation and generous private donations.
To learn more visit: Yellowstone.org/tribal-center.
