About Nate Begay

Art has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. As a child in first grade, I used to illustrate stories written by classmates. I continued on this creative, exciting path into my teens and beyond. I started with black and white photorealism at a very young age. I tried to go to school and earn a degree in visual communication but found myself bored with the process. In my early twenties, I came across an opportunity to work alongside my favorite artists in the game. Artists like Bahe Whitethorn, Johnson Yazzie, and Irving Toddy.Many, many years of learning and practice. I made my transition into color after discovering graffiti. I got into tattooing, invested five years in creating art on other people’s bodies. My artistic spirit wanted more, and nowadays, you can find a camera in my hand, with the latest venture in digital art on an Ipad.

               Almost forty years and thousands of pieces of work later. My love and passion for art are just as strong as when I was a child. That passion has motivated me and allowed my body of work to be displayed worldwide. That drive has given me a chance to share my rich culture and history with all who see what I paint. Every time I put paint onto a canvas, everyone gets to see my heart. I share the stories and the love of my people with every brushstroke and use of colors. 

     I am a Dine’ (Navajo) artist from Flagstaff, Arizona. I represent 22 tribes from this state and over 600 in North America. 

Bio 

Patrick Collins grew up near the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribal Reservation in central Michigan. As a child he was fascinated with cultural motifs and religious ideology. His concepts come from a psychoanalytical approach by using formal images of realism. He uses mixed mediums such as oil paint, oil pencil pastels and mineral leafing (Gold, Silver and Copper). His inspirations come from political issues relating to cultural identity and Native American civil rights. Patrick has been painting since 1995 but has always had an artistic personality. His largest feats were “Best of Show” at the Ziibiwing Cultural Art Show in 2001 and the 2002 Winter Olympics Mural recipient for the Discover Navajo Foundation. 

Patrick has several other award-winning pieces on display throughout the Great Lakes region. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts spring, 2021 and has several pieces on display at the Capital Building in Santa Fe New Mexico.

Artist statement

I’m a painter at heart but have worked in many different mediums throughout the years. As an Ojibwe, I have used self-expression through art, bringing awareness to a worldwide audience about my culture and Native American issues.  I use portraits as a focal point and then add cultural semiotics for the secondary part of the story. I also use bright colors to reflect the beauty of my culture, which in return lures the viewer interest. In collaboration, images of iconic figures and cultural semiotics are used to create a theme. This shows a much narrower perspective and helps break down the stereotypes of Anishinaabe (Original People). 

I want the viewer to experience a personal connection to the imagery in my paintings. For example, when I paint an image of a political portrait, I make sure the model I’m using shows the exact self-expression or gesture I’m looking for so the viewer can either relate to or clearly understand.  Without this, the painting tells a completely different story. The objects I use outside the focal point relates in a very specific way as well. 

Painting has given me the confidence to express myself openly to others that aren’t aware of the many issues Native Americans struggle within contemporary society. Self-expression through art has also been a form of healing for me. I hope to touch many lives of the Anishinaabe through the advocacy that comes from our stories told through my work. 

Fashion Designer Rebekah Jarvey believes it’s her responsibility to make sure her collectors look stylish with a strong sense of culture.

Who is Rebekah Jarvey?

Rebekah Jarvey is self-proclaimed indigenous fashionista. Her Art/Fashion career took off during the pandemic after her Flashy Night & Day mask went viral on social media attracting people, publications from around the world. She then launched her website rebekahjarvey.com She mixes her traditional tribal heritage with her crafting skills and the fashion of today to create modern, urban and authentic masks and ribbon skirts with her signature hashtag #RibbonDrip.

Community Impact 

Five years ago, Rebekah had a vison to create a space of Indigenous Fashion in her community of Rocky Boy. She coordinated the first fashion show in 2017 hosted at the Stone Child College. Because of community support and the success of the first fashion show, it grew to be an annual event. The Fashion Show is called Honor Our Legacy. The vision of Honor Our Legacy Fashion Show is to transfer traditional knowledge back to the community about the importance of knowing their families & our tribes colors & designs in beadwork & clothing as well as to be proud of their identities as a Chippewa & Cree. 

#NativeWoke Campaign

The mission for #NativeWoke is to inspire the Native American Community to wear masks, social distance & help keep our people safe. Native Woke is a movement on raising awareness to our newest enemy the COVID-19 virus. Its crucial we act now & fight together.  In 2020 her community lost a lot of fluent Cree speakers and highly respectable elders. 100% of the proceeds will go towards one of the families that was affected by this. You can purchase #NativeWoke merchandise at rebekahjarvey.com

Connect With Rebekah 

Website: rebekahjarvey.com
Instagram: instagram.com/rebekah.jarvey

Facebook: facebook.com/Rebekah-Jarvey-Sewist-108058850990210
Facebook: facebook.com/Honor-Our-Legacy-Fashion-Show-108755707176241

TikTok: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMRBw3eKC/

Artist Statement:
Jason R. Montgomery, or JRM, is a Chicano of Indigenous Californian/Mexican descent writer, painter, community artist, and engagement artist from El Centro, California. In 2016, along with Poet Alexandra Woolner, and illustrator Jen Wagner, JRM founded Attack Bear Press in Easthampton, MA. Jason’s work engages the cross-section of Chicano/Indigenous identity, cultural hybridization, post-colonial reconstruction, and political agency. His writing and visual art bridge the aesthetics and feel of the early cubist collage movement and the Russian abstract movement of the 1920s with living and historical Transborder Indigenous and Chicano art traditions to explore the Post-colonial narrative through active synthesis and guided (re)construction. JRM’s work has appeared in Split Lip Magazine, Storm Cellar, Ilanot Review, Cosmonauts Avenue, and other publications. Jason is one of the 2021 Newell Flather Awards for Leadership in Public Art outstanding nominees and 2021-2023 Easthampton Poets Laureate. Jason is also the co-founder of the police abolition group “A Knee is Not Enough” (AKINE) in Easthampton, MA