TULSA – The 19th annual Cherokee Art Market took place Oct. 12-13 with an awards reception on Oct. 11 honoring a multitude of Native artists, including “Best of Show” to Caddo Nation pottery artist Chase Kahwinhut Earles.
The annual art market draws artists from all over the country to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa. This year, more than 160 artists representing 45 tribal nations participated in the event.
“This is museum quality art. There’s things ranging from pottery to paintings, textiles, ribbon skirts. We have a lot of different jewelry. There’s contemporary and traditional art. It’s a very welcoming environment. We want everyone to feel welcome to come out and talk to the artists and get to know them and learn their stories, and what really inspires them to make their art,” CNB Manager of Cultural Programs and Events Talisha Lewallen said.
During the awards reception, more than $75,000 in cash prizes were awarded to artists. Earles, who took home “Best of Show” with a traditional southeastern tribal-style pot, is helping to revive pottery for the Caddo Nation.
“It was really only about 15 years ago that I decided to really look at getting back into art for my career. I did a little bit of research and realized that our tribe has this huge pottery tradition not many people know about,” he said.
His piece, “Caddo Story of the Flood,” relays an ancient Caddo origin story about the abuse of water resources and animals followed by a punishment from the Creator.
“The Creator comes and say you guys have been bad and then brings a flood. It starts flooding and people are desperate, and he leads those that will listen or that will correct their behavior up to dry ground with an oak leaf. Those that are left behind get turned into the new water animals to replenish those that were taken. It’s crazy that it’s an ancient story, but it kind of still holds true today, I think,” Earles said.
Chickasaw Nation artist Regina Free won “Best of Class” in the sculpture category for her piece “Osi (Chickasaw=Eagle).” Her piece is an American Bald Eagle perched upon a piece of driftwood. The animal is made entirely of cardstock and paper towels, painted and manipulated to look like a real eagle.
“I know the bald eagle is a very powerful symbol, and I thought I would do that. I’ve done one before, it was a heron. It was more relaxed and subdued. But this one I was wanting to change up the vibe a little bit, so I went with a very powerful symbol, and I pulled it off, I think,” Free said.
She said the piece took hundreds of hours to complete.
“It took a lot of time; it was about 500 hours that I poured into this. So, I think a little bit of my soul is in there. I know it is somewhere,” she said.
Free also pours her soul into most of her art, which also includes paintings and drawings of animals. After raising her children, she said she was finally able to let her artistic side come out and started with a recreated drawing of a workhorse that she titled “Self-Portrait.”
“It’s particularly a special piece for me because I had three children, and I chose to raise them instead of do art,” Free said. “In the process of doing that, it kind of became my self-portrait because the horse is working, he’s getting his way through it. Somehow through some strange way, I started to connect. I was like ‘this is me; this is my self-portrait.’”
The Cherokee Art Market showcases artists and their stories each year and continues to grow.
“It’s important for us to be able to showcase our … artists, which we are able to do throughout the whole year. But this is just on a larger scale. A lot of the artists, too, travel around to other exhibits, so they’ve made long lasting friendships and we’ve been able to get them together again and connect. This is just a really good community for artists and for people to come in and enjoy this,” Lewallen said.
There were nearly 60 winners in eight classes. For a full list of winners visit CherokeeArtMarket.com.
Winners from each class and other top honors:
Class 1 – Painting, Drawing, Graphics & Photography
Kindra Swafford, Cherokee Nation, “Director’s Chair”
Class 2 – Sculpture
Regina Free, Chickasaw Nation, “Osi (Chickasaw=Eagle)”
Class 3 – Beadwork/Quillwork
Della BigHair-Stump, Crow Tribe of Montana, “Indigenous Couture”
Class 4 – Basketry
Jacob Waytula, Cherokee Nation, “A Basket”
Class 5 – Pottery
Chase Kahwinhut Earles, Caddo Nation, “Caddo Story of the Flood”
Class 6 – Textiles
Valerie Kagan, Cherokee Nation, “Modern Day Beloved”
Class 7 – Jewelry
Joe Reano, Santo Domingo Pueblo, “Eclipses of Shades”
Class 8 – Diverse Art Forms
A Wayne ‘Tay Sha’ Earles, Caddo Nation, “Tah’-Na-ha HakA=yu’= White Buffalo”
Anna Mitchell Award
Lillie Vann, Cherokee Nation, “Exposed”
Culture Keeper Award
Valerie Kagan, Cherokee Nation, “Modern Day Beloved”
Innovator Award
Monica Silva Lovato, Santo Domingo Pueblo, “Three Sisters”
Jesse Hummingbird Legacy Award
Michael Toya, Pueblo of San Felipe, “Winter Hummerz”
Native American Art Magazine Editor’s Choice Award
Sayokla Kindness-Williams, Oneida Nation, “Takwehya’lak: Remember Us All”
