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Art Heals: The Jingle Dress Project

Artist: Eugene Tapahe/Tapahe Photography
 

Land Acknowledgment

We acknowledge that this land, which is named for the Ute Tribe, is the traditional and ancestral homeland of the Shoshone, Paiute, Goshute, and Ute Tribes. The University of Utah recognizes and respects the enduring relationship that exists between many Indigenous peoples and their traditional homelands. We respect the sovereign relationship between tribes, states, and the federal government, and we affirm the University of Utah’s commitment to a partnership with Native Nations and Urban Indian communities through research, education, and community outreach activities.


Indigenous Peoples' Day Featured Artist

Eugene Tapahe/Tapahe Photography

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Eugene Tapahe (Navajo) is a designer, artist and photographer, who specializes in capturing the beautiful landscape and people of the Southwest. He receives inspiration from his grandmother, family, and culture. 

"I have always loved photography, from the frst time I picked up a camera. I knew I had a gift for telling stories through my images."

Learn more about the artist at www.tapahe.com

Artist Upcoming and Recent Exhibitions
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Art Heals: The Jingle Dress Project

The Jingle Dress Project originated from a dream to unite the beauty of the land and the healing power of the jingle dance. The goal of the project is to take the healing power of the Ojibwe jingle dress to the land, to travel, to dance and capture a series of images to document the spiritual places our ancestors once walked, and to unite and give hope to the world through art, dance and culture to help us heal.

The Jingle Dancers are two pairs of strong Diné (Navajo) sisters, who believe in this project––so much, they volunteer their time to make this project a reality. Erin and Dion Tapahe are Diné (Navajo) from Window Rock, AZ. Sunni and JoAnni Begay are Diné (Navajo) from Pinedale, NM. All are attending college at Brigham Young University (BYU). Erin recently graduated from BYU and is pursuing a law degree in human rights. Sunni, Dion and JoAnni are currently at BYU with aspirations to continue their post-graduate education in law and medicine. They are not professional models but are strong examples of Native American women today. They have given much of their time in service and are sharing their native culture through dance. They have danced in Germany, Switzerland, Brazil, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga and China. They know the importance of our connection with the land as Native people and were raised to respect the traditions of their ancestors. In the future, they desire to be advocates for Native American people.

Virtual Gallery Walk

2020 Indigenous Peoples' Day Artists

greggdealprofilephotoGregg Deal

Gregg Deal (Pyramid Lake Paiute) is an artist and activist whose work deals with Indigenous identity and pop culture, touching on issues of race relations, historical consideration and stereotype. Gregg’s art exploits the stereotypes that exist in American culture while challenging the viewer’s considerations of the indigenous as both contemporary and relic.

gregg deal

joeymontoyaprofilephotoJoey Montoya

Joey Montoya (Lipan Apache) is a multimedia artist, clothing designer, and entrepreneur whose work is aimed at increasing the visibility of Indigenous peoples. He is the founder and owner of Urban Native Era, a brand that specializes in clothing design and content creation as well as his brand initiative "You are on Native Land" and collaboration with "Phenomenally Indigenous."

urban native era

vikiprofilephotoViki Eagle

Viki Eagle (Sicangu Lakota / Japanese) has spent a decade photographing her life as a contemporary Native American photographer in Real Life Indian from her own passion projects on mixed race Native identities, Indigenous political movements, healing runs, various event photography, Native American fashion, and using photo-voice as activism.

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2020 Virtual Gallery Walk

Additional Resources

Illuminative toolkit

IllumiNative Toolkit

IllumiNative is a national, Native-led nonprofit committed to amplifying contemporary Native voices, stories and issues to advance justice, equity and social impact. In the Indigenous Peoples' Day toolkit, you will find case studies, key questions and answers, messages, a comprehensive how-to-guides on advocating to your representative and building a coalition, and more.

toolkit

americanwestcenter

Native Places Atlas

Native Places is a spatial humanities project from the American West Center. It consists of an interactive, layered map centered on Utah that encompasses the homelands of the state’s traditionally associated tribes. The interactive map records and restores indigenous place names to major landscape features and selected historical and cultural sites in Utah.

interactive map

nativeknoweldge

Native Knowledge 360°

Native Knowledge 360° (NK360°) provides educators and students with new perspectives on Native American history and cultures. NK360° provides educational materials, virtual student programs, and teacher training that incorporate Native narratives, more comprehensive histories, and accurate information to enlighten and inform teaching and learning about Native America.

NK360°

Last Updated: 10/18/23