Julie Buffalohead’s A Little Medicine and Magic

The painting in this postcard is hanging in Denver’s art museum, and the canvas is huge! Or at least medium huge. Intentionally unsettling the painting depicts a fox lady, a skunk tower, a purse. Idk just general kookiness. But the message captivated me, and I thought about it long after the trip to Denver. Julie Buffalohead is an indigenous artist who incorporated themes of culture, racial injustice, and of course, feminism. Cuz women are like pretty cool and stuff. Or at least that’s what I hear.

Much of the imagery in this work is over my head, but it tells a story of women in the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma. The plaque next to the painting explains that traditional tattoos are a sign of regard in Julie’s tribe and women who receive them are respected and admired. The artist asks whether women have the choice to decline recognition in this way and raises a really complicated question.

How do we challenge and preserve tradition? A question that extends far beyond the Ponca Tribe.