from Curator Amber L. DuBoise-Shepherd

Featuring Creators:

Karen Berry

Adeline Ketcheshawno DuBoise

Leslie Deer

Jennifer McAffrey

Bird Mountain

Katie Thompson

Shelley Patrick

Phyllis Fife

Jimmie Carole Fife

Robin Fife Jenkins

Sandy Fife Wilson

Wêwenetôni Shehkîtâkani: Ancestral Patterns Through Our Regalia, is an exhibition influenced by my late grandmother, Adeline Ketcheshawno DuBoise, who was born for her people of the Prairie Band Potawatomi, Sac & Fox, Kickapoo, and Absentee Shawnee. My late grandmother grew up in a Kickapoo community west of Shawnee, Oklahoma. As a young girl she learned how to sew, beadwork, and create apparel for herself and our family. Over the years she became well known for her skill in creating various ribbon skirts, appliqué skirts, ribbon shirts, and shawls. Adeline Ketcheshawno DuBoise began showcasing her clothing in runway fashion shows throughout Oklahoma, and later New Mexico, through various Native American art markets and events. Her clothing has been worn by Native celebrities, and several of her pieces have been purchased by clients from around the world, even reaching international borders.

I continue to be inspired and encouraged by my late grandmother through her designs—designs passed down from her mother, her grandmother, great-grandmother, and the many mothers before us. I may not use these designs in the same way as my grandmother through cloth or thread, but I use these designs in my own paintings as I continue to share the knowledge she passed down. Sitting with her in the sewing studio while my brothers and I watched movies on a small TV, and hearing the fast work of the needle are cherished memories we will forever hold near. She created so many wonderful clothing for all of us, and we still wear them proudly, knowing we carry her love in the regalia she made.

For this exhibition I wanted to share her work alongside other Indigenous fashion designers, weavers, jewelers, and painters, each sharing their ancestral patterns of their people and their families. Many of these creators I have met over many years, even in childhood. The clothing, woven belts, and jewelry they create are more than just objects admired for their skill and beauty—they are to be respected and honored, as they carry the ancestral patterns, designs, and memories of our people. I trust this exhibition will urge viewers to look and engage more deeply with our creations beyond the surface level of the materials. They let viewers know that these creations exist beyond the past and are rooted in memory continuing to carrying our families and our nation’s people forward.