Books
“Home is Where the Buffalo Used to Be”
Edition of 5
This structure of the artist book was influenced by the migration of the American Bison and how that migration coincided with Plains Indian migrations. The structure of the book can be altered to portray different views of “migration.” My people followed the buffalo or the buffalo followed us. They were and are an integral part of our culture. Home for us is where the buffalo are, or rather where they used to be. Native people weren’t the only living thing to face colonial genocide. The American bison population was decimated to control and force Indigenous peoples onto reservations. The buffalo no longer roam where they used to, and neither do Native people.
I learned how to make a book before I learned how to bead. I fuse lazy stitch beading with bookmaking. My identity is split up into two different contexts, one that fits into contemporary culture and one that recognizes my Native identity. These books are objects that represents the two worlds I must exist in.
“we have to walk in two worlds and succeed in both”
-Purcell Powless
My Master Statement. I made this book to fulfill a requirement for my Masters degree at Cranbrook Academy of Art. This book is part of the Cranbrook Library’s permanent collection. I created this book with InDesign then used coptic stitch to bind the book together together. The covers are adorned with seed and delica beads. This is a one of a kind book.