Sandra Hale Schulman
ICT
SANTA FE, New Mexico — A multi-media buffalo thundered off with the Best of Show win at the 103rd Annual Santa Fe Indian Market.
Oklahoma artist Regina Free, Chickasaw, won for her multi-media bison sculpture called “Windswept” in her first appearance at the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts market.
At a staggering 8 feet long, the piece is made from unconventional materials — foam, felt, paper towels, reclaimed driftwood, and weathered metal sheeting.
“I understand where they — the buffalo — live, the wind and the heat,” a stunned Free said at the podium collecting her award. “I wanted him to project strength, resilience but calm, and so I wanted him to see that you are there but not care, because he does not have to.”
Other winners include Janalee Valencia, San Felipe Pueblo, for her reversible mosaic inlay necklace; Chris Youngblood and Jennifer Tafoya, Santa Clara Pueblo, for pottery; and Wakeah Jhane, Comanche, for her exquisite ledger drawing, “Last Time I Seen the Sun.”
The drawing shows an African American/Native American couple beaming at a newborn child in a cradle board under a glowing sun. Real cuttings of the small white flowers of baby’s breath adorn the bottom foreground.
In a social media post after the win, Jhane wrote, “This piece was Inspired by Ryan Coogler’s film ‘Sinners.’ It honors the film’s unflinching portrayal of kinship, motherhood, fatherhood, loss, and the sacredness of our children as spiritual beings. In this vision, the moment of the couple’s reunion with their child transcends time and place. A reminder that our Creator treasures, acknowledges, and loves every one of us, as we are. I’d like to acknowledge my close friends and family who are always there to encourage me. especially in the moments when I doubt myself, they build me up and also build on the ideas I share.”
Since 1922, Santa Fe Indian Market, the world’s largest and most prestigious Native North American art market, has awarded Best of Show winners to exceptional Native North American artists. Over 60 judges and 120 volunteers, experts in various media, convened Thursday, Aug. 14, to review, assist and critique this year’s entries. The winners were announced Friday, Aug. 15, at an awards luncheon.
“We are grateful for the continued support of our volunteers, sponsors, judges and the dedicated SWAIA artists who make SWAIA’s Best of Show the finest Native arts awards program,” said Executive Director Jamie Schulze.
The streets were packed with art and culture lovers all weekend, as hundreds of booths extended in all directions out from the main plaza. Most artists reported sold-out booths, including the delicate wool weavings of Navajo Barbara Teller Ornelas who has been exhibiting for more than 40 years.
Film stars
The events included screenings of the documentary film, “Jim Thorpe: Lit by Lightning,” from director Chris Eyre, who has just finished shooting Season 4 of “Dark Winds.”
The “Dark Winds” cast of Zahn McClarnon, Kiowa Gordon, Deanna Allison, and Gene Braverock were seen all over town modeling, attending shows, and happily posing for pictures with fans.
Up at Buffalo Thunder Hilton, the Pathways Film Festival presented an emotional 20th anniversary screening of “Trudell” by director Heather Rae who was there along with Trudell’s children, Sage and Wovoka. A panel was moderated by Sterlin Harjo of “Reservation Dogs,” who spoke of Trudell’s powerful presence, words, and acting.
Gala glam and ribbons on the runway
The Gala on Saturday night at the Convention Center was a glamorous affair with big names in the Native world in attendance, including Oscar winner Wes Studi, Cherokee, and Crystal Echo Hawk, Pawnee, of IllumiNative. A cocktail hour in the courtyard was followed by a seated dinner at elegant white tables decorated with feathers and Indigenous plant bouquets.
The menu, sponsored by Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, featured three-sisters salad, green chile asadero blue corn tamales, stuffed poblano peppers with guajillo chile cream sauce, and a divine dessert platter with prickly pear panna cotta and red chile chocolate shortbread.
An auction for SWAIA hosted by filmmaker/designer Steven Paul Judd featured art from Virgil Ortiz, and a three-artist collab gorget neck piece netted over $87,000. SWAIA Indian Market Guide cover artist Karen Clarkson’s sweet painting of a Navajo girl snagged over $10,000.
Entertainment from musician Robert Mirabal, Taos Pueblo, accompanied designs by Patricia Michaels, also of Taos Pueblo, in a stunner of a fashion show with innovative outfits such as a dress adorned with dozens of red-soled moccasins dedicated to missing children, and a circle-of-life hoop dress worn by actress Tantoo Cardinal, Cree Métis, along with former Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland, Laguna Pueblo, in a glittering silver sequin gown.
Guest star models included Jhane Myers, Comanche, producer of “Prey” and “Free Leonard Peltier”; Cara Jade Myers, Kiowa, of “Killers of the Flower Moon”; Chef Pyet deSpain, Prairie Band Potawatomi; Navajo weaver designer Naiomi Glasses; and “Dark Winds” Deanna Allison, Colorado River Tribe.
The SWAIA Native Fashion show on Sunday, Aug. 17, was the first to be co-produced by model/designer for House of Sutai Peshawn Bread, Comanche, who brought out top Native designers working today, including Jamie Okuma, Luiseño; Penny Singer, Diné; Lauren Good Day, Arikara/Hidatsa/Blackfeet; and Jontay Kahm, Plains Cree.
Starting with powwow dancer Kellen Trenal, Nez Perce, in a swirl of a black suit and fur powering down the runway, the standout moment from Okuma was the final dress in her show made of delicate, hand-stitched dentalium shells.
“It was a dress I had thought of for a long time,” Okuma told ICT. “You can’t sit in it, but it looks great standing.”
Fashion over form, we say.
Okuma, who is known for her beaded boots, sent her models out barefoot. The reason being that all the custom shoes were stolen prior to the show, a disaster that may have sent most designers into a tailspin, but she just went all or nothing with it. (#shoesback)
The final collection by Jontay Kahm, a wonderkid 29 year-old designer, was a masterclass in innovation. The outfits were made almost entirely of densely, sideways-layered satin ribbons in a rainbow of colors that shimmered and swayed as the models walked. Feathered Mayan warrior helmets topped the outfits.
The grand finale was walked by top Native model Phillip Bread, Comanche — son of Jhane Myers, whose family was having a stellar week — in a black “suit” with feathered pants, beading and more layered ribbons. It’s astonishing that this is only Kahm’s third collection.
In an unusual level of generosity, the show producers trotted out the entire production team of hair, makeup, sound, photography, and lighting assistants on the runway. It truly takes a reservation village to produce a show of this magnitude.
That’s a wrap on Indian Market 2025, a feast for the eyes, ears, heart, and spirit.
