The Durango Creative District recently hosted Super-Powered Sovereignty, a vibrant and empowering exhibition celebrating Indigenous comic book art. Curated by Andrea Descheenie, the event brought together a diverse group of Indigenous artists whose work explores identity, sovereignty, and cultural resilience through dynamic visual storytelling. Attendees experienced an array of original illustrations, prints, and comic panels featuring Indigenous superheroes, protectors, and complex characters that reimagine representation in the comic world. The opening reception invited the community to engage directly with the artists’ creative visions, reflect on the intersections of heritage and modern art, and honor Indigenous voices during Native American Heritage Month. By Paige Sparks. This story is sponsored by San Juan Regional Medical Center SJRMC and Tafoya, Barrett & Associates.
Super-Powered Sovereignty - https://www.durangocreativedistrict.org/dcd-events/super-powered-sovereignty
San Juan Regional Medical Center SJRMC - https://www.sanjuanregional.com/
Tafoya, Barrett & Associates - https://www.tafoyabarrett.com/
Well, it feels really an amazing, actually, to give an opportunity to these incredible indigenous artists to get their work displayed out into the world. You're watching The Local News Network, brought to you by Tafoya Barrett and Associates PC and San Juan Regional Medical Center. Andrea De Hello, my name is Andrea. We are here today in the celebration of a collaborative exhibition here with the Durango Creative District called Superpower Sovereignty. In this exhibition, BCD and I have prog six creative indigenous artists to display their comic book arts and illustration. I
Contributed five paintings of mine, three of them are from my comic series. I've been self-publishing comics since 2017. And when I heard that they were doing a series on indigenous comic book art, I was like, Hey, that's me. So this one's called Go Grandma, go. And it's an acrylic painting. I use posca markers and paint. So we have the, you know, stereotypical Navajo grandma and she's writing the sand worm from Beetlejuice and you know, kind of combining pop culture and like the imagery of destroying a symbol of colonialism, which is the Indian Trading Post. And you know, oh, this looks like Mars, but you know, it can also look like the Navajo reservation. So that was the what I wanted to convey here.
I try to do art that's not empowering, 'cause I believe in empowerment through art. And I always like the idea of good versus evil because for me, I believe, you know, especially in this day and age that you know, it's good to fight for good, have a character called Alet Amox Slayer. And so for me, she's like a character that I like to use, inspired by my culture, but also inspired by comic book characters like Wonder Woman.
I think it's important to have, you know, showcases like these so we can show, you know, modern indigenous art. And we can also inspire people, not just young children, but also older people. You know, that we're still very alive and we're still really reinventing ourselves and expressing ourselves through different types of artwork. And I'm very honored to be here. For more information, visit online@durangocreativedistrict.org. And for more stories like this, visit Durango local.news.
