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The annual Santa Fe Indian Market, one of the largest shoppable markets for Indigenous craftwork in the world, looks a little different this year. Usually, an international crowd of collectors fly in to peruse its endless booths of Indigenous-made items. Held at the historic Santa Fe Plaza, it’s a grand event where many of the participating artists make a significant portion of their income for the year. Their pieces—ranging from clothing to accessories and art—are labors of love that take weeks, and sometimes months, to create; they spend all year leading up to it making them. For many, it’s also a long-standing tradition to show there—something that has been done since 1922.
But naturally, the market has gone virtual this summer as a result of the pandemic, and all of its participating artists are now selling their works online, with digital support from the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA), which organizes the market every year. Throughout the month of August, artists from a variety of tribes will be posting new works to their websites that were made especially for market month.
Shopping is just one part of the market. In mid-August, it will host a virtual runway show featuring a handful of Indigenous designers—the star attraction will be a brand-new collection from Orlando Dugi, a veteran Diné designer. Other labels, such as Korina Emmerich and Catherine Blackburn, both featured on Vogue before, will be showing as well. Some of the Santa Fe Indian Market’s signature events, such as the Clothing Contest, which displays the best of traditional wears, will also go virtual. Submissions can be entered electronically, and judges will post the winners, based on photos, at the end of the month.
The market’s shoppable booths, however, are undeniably the most-missed event this summer. But fans of Indigenous artwork, accessories, and ready-to-wear can easily find unique works online now, thanks to the new virtual format—and Vogue is highlighting some must-know artists worth checking out for authentic, one-of-a-kind designs.
Below, eight artists to know from this year’s virtual market.
Elias Jade Not Afraid (Beadwork/Quillwork)
Elias Jade Not Afraid’s modern, unexpected aesthetic fuses traditional techniques with skull and rose motifs. A prominent Apsáalooke beadwork artist based in Whitecone, Arizona, he told Vogue last year, “I taught myself how to do the traditional Crow-style beadwork technique…beading with two needles: one threads the beads, and the other tacks down the beads on thread every two to three beads.” For now, he operates mainly on Instagram, where he posts new works and occasionally opens up his DMs for orders too.
Robin Waynee (Jewelry)
Robin Waynee is a Saginaw Chippewa jewelry designer based in Santa Fe. Her ornate, delicate pieces have won her many awards at the Santa Fe Indian Market, and she learned the craft from her father, who was also a jeweler and sculptor. Her most well-known pieces are her statement earrings made of luxe materials, such as Tahitian pearls, pink sapphires, and diamonds.
Tom Farris (Diverse Arts)
Tom Farris is a multidisciplinary artist who is Otoe-Missouria and Cherokee from Norman, Oklahoma. His contemporary works, which include paintings and sculptures, have been exhibited at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and come with a sense of humor rooted in history and culture. This installation of an Indigenous-themed slot machine, for instance, plays on how tribes are reclaiming their land through tribal gaming and casinos.
Cara Romero (Photography)
Cara Romero, a Chemehuevi photographer from Santa Fe, creates arresting photographs rooted in current events and issues within the Indigenous community. They also highlight traditional aspects of her own tribe. One of her newest images, titled Puha (The Path), depicts four Indigenous boys on the Chemehuevi Valley Indian Reservations learning to sing their traditional gourd songs.
Korina Emmerich (Ready-to-Wear)
Korina Emmerich is the Puyallup designer of her ready-to-wear line, Emme. Emmerich, who is based in New York, will unveil a full new collection during the virtual fashion show later this month. Her colorful pieces channel her Indigenous heritage with a strong focus on social and climate justice (she is also involved with groups such as the Indigenous Kinship Collective and Slow Factory). Recently, she has also been producing printed masks made from Pendleton wools.
Naiomi Glasses (Textiles)
Naiomi Glasses learned how to weave from her family at a young age, and even created her first rug by the age of 18. Now, she’s a seventh-generation Diné textile weaver based on the Navajo Nation in Arizona. Glasses produces a range of textile products from saddle blankets to crossbody bags, which she will be unveiling throughout the month. With a wardrobe full of amazing turquoises and Indigenous-owned clothing brands, her personal style is just as good as her work.
Virgil Ortiz (Pottery and Ready-to-Wear)
Pottery artist and clothing designer Virgil Ortiz is known for creating chic pottery barware, including glasses, made of glazed clay. As a Cochiti Pueblo pottery artist, he sometimes uses his work to pay homage to Indigenous figures in history as well, such as this vase based on the Zuni artist We’wha, who was a notable Two-Spirit (an Indigenous individual who identifies as having both male and female traits).
Maria Samora (Jewelry)
Maria Samora’s sleek, minimal jewelry defies what one may expect from Indigenous craftwork, but her modern pieces are still crafted with love and quality. From Taos Pueblo in New Mexico, Samora runs the line with her jewelry-maker husband, Kevin Rebholtz. Her standout jewels include her sterling silver cage rings with diamond accents as well as her silver and turquoise feather earrings.