“Aanii, ndinaawamagaanadog! Maygabow Ogidajew Kwe, nindizhinikaaz. Gaa-waabaabiganikaag ndoonjibaa, Migizi ndoodem. Hello, my relatives! My name is Woman Standing on the Mountaintop; Valerie St.Pierre Smith is my English name. A proud descendant of White Earth Nation, I am Eagle clan.”

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Wonderer and wanderer, I am a multidisciplinary artist, designer, educator, and scholar based in Umoⁿhoⁿ, Ní Btháska (anglicized as Omaha, Nebraska). Fascinated with adornment, identity, and the healing power of beauty from a very young age, I see creation as an act of care.

 

Working across traditional mediums and digital technologies, I blur the lines and challenge the definitions of 'fine art' and 'decorative art.' Using material, texture, color, line, shape, pattern, and linguistics as language, I explore themes of Indigenized futurisms through ancestral teachings, and identity and beauty as medicine. Weaving these elements together through fashion and adornment, multi-media installation, design, writing, and performance, I integrate my lived experience as a mixed-race urban Anishnaabe kwe into contemporary representation. ​​Rooted in the 7 Grandfather teachings, Wisdom, Love, Respect, Bravery, Honesty, Humility, and Truth all guide my work aiming to foster healing, kinship and dialogue.

 

Notably, my work has been seen across Turtle Island including at the National Museum of the American Indian, the Mountain Plains Contemporary Art Biennial, Calgary Fashion Week, McCarter Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, The Kennedy Center, Sea World: San Diego, Pilobolus Dance Theatre, and independent gallery and exhibition spaces. I have participated in residencies and creative cohorts at Banff Centre for Art and Creativity, Amplify Art’s Alternate Currents, and Great Plains Theatre Commons’ Design Wing. My ten+ years of  scholarship on decolonizing art and design has reached international institutions, including Central Saint Martins, UAL London. Founding board member of Healing Ribbons and experienced faculty member, I hold a B.F.A. from Stephens College and an M.F.A. from San Diego State University. #beautyismedicine

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​Interested in working together? Drop me a note, vsmithdesign@gmail.com, or follow me @valeriestpierresmith on Instagram!​​