November marks National Native American Heritage Month. This month serves as an opportunity to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of Indigenous people to the establishment and growth of the United States and to honor the rich culture, traditions, and achievements of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and affiliated Island communities.
In recognition of National Native American Heritage Month, the City of Iowa City collaborated with artist Shelley Buffalo to create vibrant banners displayed throughout downtown.
Artist statement on the banners
"The banner art I created for Native American Heritage Month in Iowa City is a tribute to Native American ribbon work. Ribbon work applique is an intricate and sophisticated decorative art which arose from the Great Lakes region with the influx of European trade goods during the 18th century. By the early 19th century, the Winnebago, Potawatomi, Menominee, Fox (Meskwaki), Miami, Sauk, Shawnee, Delaware, Osage, and Kickapoo were beautifully advanced and refined in the craft. Ribbonwork quickly spread to neighboring Woodland and Prairie tribes and is ever-growing in popularity and in diverse themes to reflect contemporary Indigenous artistic expressions and experiences while maintaining the traditional attributes of the craft. My tribe, the Meskwaki, referred to as the “Fox” by the French, English and subsequently, Americans, are one of the early initiators of ribbonwork and continue the art form today.
The red/pink/blue/light blue banner art leans more towards beaded applique in design. The red/green/black/white banner art is representational of ribbonwork style and the color theme includes the colors of red and green from the Meskwaki flag, and the black and white refers to a Meskwaki cultural practice of alternate designation at birth. The reflective design is an Indigenous cultural understanding of nature, in that for every physical manifestation, there is also a spiritual manifestation.
I encourage Iowans and visitors to explore Meskwaki culture and history through the many resources in print and on the web and to visit the Meskwaki Cultural Center & Museum on the Meskwaki Settlement near Tama."
About the artist
Shelley is an enrolled member of the Meskwaki Nation and lives on the Meskwaki Settlement near Tama. As an artist, activist, organizer, and mother centered in Indigenous futurism, land justice and land back, her work converges at the human need to rebuild the cultural village for future generations. It is her belief that a livable future comes from our collective creativity to imagine humans being beyond colonial paradigms of extraction and exploitation. Shelley is a 2024-26 Rural Regenerator Fellow through the Minnesota-based organization, Springboard for the Arts.
Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague invites residents and visitors to explore Downtown Iowa City to view the banners which will be displayed through January.
