Summary
I am a visual artist who works with photography and mixed media. I often embed myself into different cultures and subcultures and I use my art to share their voices, experiences and inflections, providing viewers with a respectful glimpse into their unique worldviews, concerns and aspirations.
I am a member of the Yavapai-Apache Nation and grew up in Camp Verde, a rural river valley in northern Arizona, where I learned the value of the interdependent relationships between land, culture and community. While growing up I also learned the power of sharing stories as a means of transferring knowledge and reaffirming cultural practices.
As a result, I will always hold a great appreciation for talking with people and learning about them no matter who they are or where they come from. I believe in patience, listening, generosity and empathy rather than judgement, or imposing individual expectations upon individuals and publics. Instead, I welcome people with open arms and am able to access to their most personal and intimate spaces, gestures and stories. I have always been intrigued in the life stories of people, where they come from, where they are going, and what makes them who they are. The breadth and diversity of my work includes photographs covering brothels, including the Moonlight Bunny Ranch, hotel living, drugs, protests, white supremacists, biker gangs, satanism, extreme fitness, and Native American ceremonies.
My work provides an analytical, compassionate and uniquely Native American lens from which to view, engage, learn and share the full range of human emotion and experience across cultures and subcultures — off the reservation and on the reservation. My work navigates the complexity of the human spirit, in private, intimate and honest settings, affording my audience with a respectful view into the lives and socially defined relationships of people who would otherwise remain invisible, unknown, or isolated in the shadows.
Education
- M.A. in Media Innovation, Reynolds School of Journalism, University of Nevada, Reno
- M.F.A in Interdisciplinary Arts, Sierra Nevada University
- B.F.A., Sierra Nevada University
- A.S. in Digital Arts, Zaki Gordon Institute for Independent Filmmaking (Yavapai College)
Professional certifications
- Eddie Adams Class of XXXV - Jay Westcott Perseverance Award Recipient
- Photojournalist - New York Times, NBC News, USA Today, ProPublica, High Country News, Nevada Current, Sierra Nevada Ally
- Contributor - Nevada Current, Reynolds Sandbox, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Carson Now, Nevada Appeal, Northern Nevada Business Weekly, First Nation Focus, Illuminative
- Featured in Cows & Indians Magazine