The Santa Fe Indian Market recently had its 100th birthday and brought together seven Indigenous designers for an out-of-this-world fashion show in a fitting celebration.
For this event, SWAIA brought together a powerhouse of a team from all across Turtle Island, including:
- Jason Baerg (Cree Métis)
- Korina Emmerich (Puyallup and Nisqually)
- Yolanda Skelton (Gitxsan)
- Dorothy Grant (Haida)
- Lesley Hampton (Anishinaabe)
- Ursula Hudson (Tlingit)
- Himikalas / Pam Baker (Kwaguilth and Squamish)
The show was kicked off by SWAIA’s executive director Kimberly Peone, who introduced Tara L. Lujan, a member of the New Mexico House of Representatives. Lujan congratulated the market for its long-running history and recognized it for “promoting Native artistry and for embodying and preserving traditional Native culture.”
With that, the show began with the immaculate display of the designer’s work. There were so many stand-out pieces from each collection that we couldn’t recap them all, so here are some of our favorites. Modeling for Korina Emmerich was Prey’s very own Amber Midthunder, wearing a checkered skirt paired with a tank top with floor-length fringe.
Another stand out of the night was Owen Unruh modeling for Lesley Hampton, wearing a white tulle dress with a half skirt adorned with short patches of fringe and rhinestones that made the entire garment come alive in the light.
In what was easily a fan favorite of the night, Alizae Kavosiea modeled a transforming dress for Himikalas Pamela Baker. The dress was paired with a beautiful performance from Kavosiea, who entered the runway with the bottom half of the dress on display and with a cover over her torso resembling an orca. On her way down the runway, Kavosiea flipped the cover over to wear as a shawl, much to the crowd’s delight, and ended the performance by letting the cover flow behind her.
As the fashion show wrapped up, an auction featured work from Indigenous artists: Monty Singer, Dante Biss-Grayson, Thomas Tenorio, Jackie L. Bread, Brent Learned, Ira Lujan, Lyndon Tsosie, and Cara Romero.
The gala in its entirety was a beauty to behold and a wonderful way to celebrate the market’s 100th year and kick off another 100 more.
