DAKHOTA ANCESTORS
- Title
- DAKHOTA ANCESTORS
- Creator
Danielle Seewalker is an artist and writer. Danielle Seewalker is Húŋkpapȟa Lakȟóta and a citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Trib (SeeWalker, “Danielle SeeWalker”). She often honors her heritage in her artwork using traditions materials or imagery. Her art are works in a verity of mediums including bead works, murals, and photography collaborations. She published a book called “Still Here: A Past to Present Insight of Native American People & Culture” in 2020 (SeeWalker, “Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival”). She is also a part of the “Red Road Project” an ongoing collaboration with Carlotta Cardana which uses photos to convey what modern life looks like as native american person through story telling (SeeWalker, “Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival”). She also is involved in Babe Walls working in marketing of the organization and participates as an artist in the festivals. Babe Walls is a non-prophet that supports woman and non-binary artists (BABE). The organization supports mentorships between artists that are well establish and new artist through collaboration paintings (BABE). She now lives and works out of Denver Colorado and is a mother to two sons (SeeWalker, “Danielle SeeWalker”).
- Date
- Created: August 7th 2024
Documented: October 20th 2024 - Description
- The arrangement of the mural is very symmetrical. At the center of the mural is a budding flower and the there is a woman’s face on each side of the flower. On the other side of the women’s faces there is another set of flowers. The focal point of the mural is on the two women that are facing each other. The Mural is full of different bold and vibrant colors with a solid dark grey backdrop. The simplicity of the backdrop makes the color of the women’s earrings and shirts stand out even more. The bright color gives an upbeat and positive vibe to the mural. An even thickness black line outlines almost every shape within the mural. The black line gives a crisp and polished finish to the mural making it feel extremely professional and detail oriented. The only shape in the mural not outlined by black are the solid white triangles within the earrings while even the polka dots on the shirt are outlined. The lines are both straight and sharp as well as rounded in the face and braids. The mural has the texture of a cinderblock wall behind it. When looking at the piece from a far the texture isn’t noticeable because your eye is drawn to the crisp colors and women’s faces however when you get up-close to look at detail the block texture is noticeable. The overcoming of the texture gives the women depicted an air of resiliency and overcoming obstacles in their own personal lives as they conquer the texture of the wall derailing their spotlight. One of the ways that the artist creates depth is within the women themselves. The braids of the women are obstructing the view of the women’s shirts and part of their faces. The way the jaw is outlined also creates a sense of depth with her chin seeming to protrude slightly from her throat.
- Subject
- The state of Minnesota is located on 11 different Native American tribal lands. The piece is a reminder of all of those Native American communities that have been displaced. This painting uses a character of Danielle Seewalker’s with the use of her “we are our ancestor faces”. The “we are our ancestor faces” appears in several of her works like her piece We Are Because Our Ancestors Were a piece that she painted in Denver. She said in a post about her Denver piece “We are the seeds of our ancestors’ dreams. We carry forward not only their DNA, but the prayers they sent wishing for a better existence” (“Danielle SeeWalker (@Seewalker_art) • Instagram Photos and Videos”). For her Minnesota piece she framed the faces with native flowers as an homage to the Dakota people that originally inhabited the land. The customized flowers give the work a sense of connection to the land and the local community which is not always common with out of state paintings. An additional small detail in the artwork knowing about its Native American roots is that the hair of both the ancestors’ faces is long and braided meaning that they are not in a time of mourning where their hair would be cut. The two faces remind viewers of the people that inhabited the land before us and the dreams that they hope we fulfill today. It also gives insite on looking back at the people who came before us and invites the viewers to think about the generations that will follow after us.
- Rights
- Artist: Danielle Seewalker
Researcher: Audrey Percich - Source
- BABE. “BABE WALLS.” BABE WALLS, 2014, www.babewalls.com/shop. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
“Danielle SeeWalker (@Seewalker_art) • Instagram Photos and Videos.” Instagram.com, 2020, www.instagram.com/seewalker_art/?hl=en. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
SeeWalker, Danielle. “Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival.” Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival, 2014, www.chromazone.net/danielle-seewalker. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
---. “Danielle SeeWalker.” Danielle SeeWalker, 2014, www.seewalker.com/about. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Files
Collection
Citation
Danielle Seewalker is an artist and writer. Danielle Seewalker is Húŋkpapȟa Lakȟóta and a citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Trib (SeeWalker, “Danielle SeeWalker”). She often honors her heritage in her artwork using traditions materials or imagery. Her art are works in a verity of mediums including bead works, murals, and photography collaborations. She published a book called “Still Here: A Past to Present Insight of Native American People & Culture” in 2020 (SeeWalker, “Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival”). She is also a part of the “Red Road Project” an ongoing collaboration with Carlotta Cardana which uses photos to convey what modern life looks like as native american person through story telling (SeeWalker, “Chroma Zone Mural & Art Festival”). She also is involved in Babe Walls working in marketing of the organization and participates as an artist in the festivals. Babe Walls is a non-prophet that supports woman and non-binary artists (BABE). The organization supports mentorships between artists that are well establish and new artist through collaboration paintings (BABE). She now lives and works out of Denver Colorado and is a mother to two sons (SeeWalker, “Danielle SeeWalker”)., “DAKHOTA ANCESTORS,” Museum in the streets: Murals in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, accessed March 10, 2026, https://mspmurals.omeka.net/items/show/22.