Sahan Journal: The art of preservation: Native artist paints her way through Arikara history
In the Twin Cities arts scene this weekend, explore the Arikara heritage through vibrant paintings of Native women at All My Relations Arts….
All My Relations Arts, a nonprofit art gallery that showcases Native American fine arts, will host “Arikara Proper,” a collection of acrylic paintings that tell the stories of the Arikara people. The artworks reflect the displacement of the Arikara from their traditional lands along the Missouri River due to pressure and conflicts with the Sioux in the early 1860s.
Before becoming an artist, Jennifer White, an Arikara, balanced the demands of raising six children while working in the service industry in South Dakota.
“I was swinging beers, bartending and serving as a waitress—I had six kids by the time I was 30, so hustling for money was what I could do best,” she said. “But it was through that experience of working around people in a bar or serving food that I really got to meet different kinds of people and figure out what kind of person I am.”