S2E20: Delaena Uses Knife (Lakota)

When 2023 Artist in Business Leadership fellow Deleana Uses Knife (Lakota) creates work, the colors seem to dance and stories come alive. Embark on an inspiring journey with this exceptional Lakota artist from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, whose passion for graphic design, mural creation, and dreams of animation bring the narratives of the Black Hills and Devil's Tower into vivid focus. Selena's art is more than a visual feast; it's a beacon of cultural preservation, a testament to her dedication to storytelling, and a challenge to the stereotypes that have long confined indigenous voices. Our conversation reveals how her support from the First People's Fund catalyzed her creativity, leading to a studio of her own and recognition such as the Emerging Artist Award. As she sets her sights on collaborating with giants like Walt Disney, Selena becomes a true muse for aspiring artists everywhere.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
And more.
I want to inspire other artiststo be annoying, that they
belong at the table too, andthere is no table, just an
exerwine table.
Then others will follow.
The Collective Spirit Podcast.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
First People's Fund presents the Collective Spirit
Podcast.
The Collective Spirit moveseach of us to stand up and make
a difference, to pass onancestral knowledge and simply
extend a hand of generosity.
The Collective Spirit Podcastfeatures Native artists and
culture bearers who discuss thepower of Indigenous art and

(00:50):
culture.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
My name is Selena Grey and I'm in the College of
Lakota from the Shrine RiverStreet 5.
I have a graphic design degreefrom O'Lala Lakota College.
There's a lot of great teachersand mentors there.
I measured with NetflixAnimation and that is one thing

(01:15):
that I would love to get in morein-depth is to also work in
that industry.
But for now, I am a graphicdesigner and also I have done a
mural in Minnesota and will do amural for the new hospital in

(01:35):
Rapid City for the IHS as well.
I love to do painting, mainlyacrylics.
I love story books.
I also get my inspiration fromWalt Disney and Pixar animations
and I love to re-tell thestories around the Black Hills

(02:00):
and Devil's Tower and how itbegan and I definitely think
that's very important to havethose illustrations and also
making them into animations.
And yeah, that's why I want toget into it.
There's not a lot of artiststhat do that type of style.

(02:21):
So that's just one thing I wantto get into Artists, to be an
artist here in Rapid City,because you come up against a
lot of stereotypes, how thingsshould be, but if you just
listen to your own voice in yourown head and heart, that just

(02:44):
kind of separates what peoplethink about you and you have
your own identity.
That's really important whenyou're an artist.
You have your own mind about it.
I think everyone has a thoughtabout how things should go, but
I would say, just trust yourselfas an artist and have your own

(03:04):
mind about what you want.
And my goal as an artist is myneed of culture, you know, and
that's very important to me andthat's why I love to do my
illustrations.
My intentions were small, I say, to have a better presentation

(03:34):
by myself, because I didn't havea vendor sign, I didn't have
that type of equipment and myfriends were encouraging me and
I mainly surrounded myself withbusiness people and they helped
me with my proposal and they'rethe ones that told me that I

(03:57):
could do it, that I hadsomething special and unique,
that voice that other youngpeople needed.
Doing this fellowship has reallyhelped me.
It helped me build that studiobecause I never had a studio.
What I had was my bed and myphone and my laptop and the

(04:24):
first people's fun helped me andget that computer.
They help me get my vendors, mythings and my desk and things
that would have cost a lot ofmoney.
They granted me 10 K, which Ifeel really blessed with.
There's a lot of projects thatI'm thinking about, like making

(04:51):
my own favorite wine and alsomaking stickers and more
business cards and t-shirts.
I'm just really grateful to beon top of this fellowship, the
next one being for travel to goto certain markets to sell my

(05:13):
artwork and I recently got donewith one this past weekend at
that native pop in Rapid City,south Dakota, and they gave me
one award that was for a MergingArtist Award this year and I
also sold some prints at themarket and it went pretty well.

(05:37):
I think I've always told peoplethat I want to work for Walt
Disney one day and that's mygoal.
I've been really blessed totalk to someone who does work
for Walt Disney.
Walt did, and they gave me someadvice on how to work towards

(06:01):
those goals.
I've always painted and I had arough childhood which has led
me to be a survivor of these badthings about my life, and if

(06:24):
someone were to ask me what mychildhood was like, I wouldn't
know what to tell them becausemy brain doesn't let me go that
far back, and today I have thissummer that sometimes comes and

(06:47):
goes and stuff like that, and myart has always been inspired by
that hope that, no matter howbad it got, that innocence is
still there.
And who I am as a Nacotu Lakotawoman, I can say that my

(07:13):
honestly kept the promise tothat little girl that I'm still
painting, I'm still drawing andthat one day you'll see me
working on that big Hollywoodproject because I belong

(07:34):
anywhere.
And that's how we should thinkof ourselves that we belong
everywhere and we can doanything.
That's what drives me andthat's one thing I hope people

(07:57):
can just know that they canpersevere.
I'll do anything that they doin their life.
And yeah, that's pretty muchwhat I think about why I want to
be a Nacotu Lakota woman andwho I am as a person, and more I
want to inspire other artiststo be annoying, that they belong

(08:23):
at the table too, and if thereis no table, then just make your
own table, then other peoplewill follow.
It's still a great opportunityfor other artists to give it a

(08:44):
start, because some people justdon't know how to start.
I would say just go to school,because that's what I did and
that's how it started for me.
Anyway, I got to meet othergreat artists that helped me and
mentioned me and gave me ideas.
Just have that open mind aboutyourself and just grow as an

(09:09):
artist wwwNacotuLakotaorg.