Dyani White Hawk is a Minneapolis–based painter, whose art draws from the history of #Lakota abstraction in beadwork, painting, and quill work, a traditional form of embroidery using porcupine quills. She also situates her practice in dialogue with that of abstract painters such as #BarnettNewman and #JacksonPollock, who claimed Indigenous art as an influence. White Hawk made Wopila | Lineage by affixing loomed strips of thin glass bugle beads onto aluminum panels.
As she has stated: “Using glass beads references the history of cross-cultural trade relationships that have influenced the evolution of art forms over generations. The work is uniquely Lakota, tied to a lineage of artwork that speaks to connections between land and life. The title, Wopila | Lineage, expresses deep gratitude for the interwoven network of ancestral and living communities that make the work possible. I believe beauty is medicinal. The work, as an offering of beauty, is a gift of reciprocity. Simultaneously, the work presents critical dialogue that aims to shift collective narratives toward truthful reflections of the complex history of this land base.”
