Native Elements | May 21-May 26, 2025 | Santa Fe, NM

Keeping Tradition Alive

Native Elements reinvents and reinvigorates a long-standing annual Santa Fe event.

By Sarah Gianelli

Native Elements, an Indigenous festival and market that will replace the long-standing Native Treasures,will take place over Memorial Day weekend from May 21 through May 26 at the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens, the Santa Fe Community Convention Center, in the Santa Fe Plaza and local galleries. The city-wide event heralds the start of the 2025 Santa Fe art season.

Sheldon Harvey (Navajo (Diné)), Celestial Gardens, oil on canvas, 62 x 84 in.

“We created Native Elements because we know there is a need for the city and the Indigenous artists who have participated in this event to have an event such as this at this time of the year,” says David Young, executive director of the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens. “As soon as we heard that the [Museum of Indian Arts & Culture] was no longer…putting on the Native Treasures event, we brought in a group of Native artists and together established a plan for this new event.”

Pottery by Cliff Fragua (Jemez Pueblo), whose sculptures are featured in an exhibit at the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens.

The show kicks off at the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 21, with an opportunity to meet featured artists Cliff Fragua, Zoë Urness, Steve and Cree LaRance, Jhane Myers, George Alexander and others, during an evening of food, drink, live music, auctions and the presentation of the first Native Elements Distinguished Achievement Award.

The event continues at the botanical gardens on Thursday with a featured artist panel discussion at 11 a.m. with Michael Clawson, executive editor of Western Art Collector as well as its sister title, Native American Art. It is also an opportunity to view the current exhibition of work by Jemez Pueblo sculptor Cliff Fragua.

George Alexander (Muscogee Creek), Smirk, acrylic on canvas, 48 x 48 in.

That evening, beginning at 5:30 p.m., Native Elements heads down to the Santa Fe Plaza for a gallery stroll between top dealers of Indigenous art including King Galleries, Faust Gallery, Manitou Galleries and Palace Jewelers, Allan Houser Gallery, Niman Fine Art, True West Gallery, Bahti Indian Arts, Shiprock Santa Fe, the Rainbow Man and more. Involving the local galleries is an exciting addition to the Native Treasures tradition.

George Alexander (Muscogee Creek), Long Trip, acrylic on canvas, 48 x 48 in.

Photography by featured Alaskan Tlinglit/Cherokee artist Zoë Urness.

“The gallery stroll is new to Native Elements as it is our wish to bring in the entire art community for this new season kick-off event,” says Young. “There are so many great galleries in Santa Fe that carry Native art so why not get that network of galleries engaged in this event and this was a good way to do it. They benefit from it, the artists benefit from it and the event benefits from it.”

Photography by featured Alaskan Tlinglit/Cherokee artist Zoë Urness.

The market, where nearly 200 artists will show and sell their art, opens Friday evening at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center with a ticketed meet-the-artists reception and preview event from 5 to 8 p.m. The event opens to the public on Saturday at 10 a.m.

Sheldon Harvey, who will be showing his painting Celestial Gardensand others, says, “My inspiration for this painting stems from the delicate balance between people and nature, reflecting how we coexist and flourish together. Employing a rapid over-and-under painting technique, I’ve expanded upon the traditional method, incorporating inventive approaches and emphasizing polygon shapes to enhance abstraction. The focus lies in exploring color values, depth, contrast, and the nuances of perception, all while drawing upon the enduring stories, values, and customs of my Navajo heritage.”

Silver and turquoise cuff by featured artist Cree LaRance, an enrolled member of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, with Hopi, Navajo, and Assiniboine roots.

The market continues at the convention center through Sunday, May 25, with special programming ongoing at the Santa Fe Plaza throughout the weekend, and the final festival closing party taking place at the botanical gardens on Monday, May 26, at 5:30 p.m.

“We wish to highlight the best that Santa Fe has to offer,” says Young. “And as Memorial Day has always been the kick-off to the Santa Fe art season, we want to provide an event that does so in a way that brings the entire art market together to celebrate the unique vision that Santa Fe has to offer.”