Artist Julia Arriola, of Mescalero/Mayo descent, comes from a long line of storytellers. “My grandmother was Mescalero, and I remember sitting on her porch listening to her stories. She had a knack for blending the old with the new that made her stories come alive,” she says. Arriola’s newest body of work—a series of ledger drawings on 20th-century ledger paper depicting anthropomorphized animals—reframes the old Native American myths and legends she heard as a child.
Fox and Coyote, Enjoying Grape Soda, Laugh about the Tricks They have Played on Each Other, mixed media drawing on 1874 ledger paper, 12 x 15 in.
“Myths and legends are constantly being reinterpreted to reflect the values, concerns and imaginations of each new generation. This ongoing reinterpretation highlights the timeless relevance of myth and legend, as well as their adaptability to changing social, political and artistic contexts,” says Arriola. Each ledger drawing also reflects the artist’s interest in the retro-futuristic steampunk movement, using that lens to reinterpret different myths and legends across various Native American tribes. “Steampunk is flexible and imaginative, blending Victorian-era aesthetics and retro futuristic technology, making a powerful genre for reimagining historical and cultural themes,” Arriola adds.
Menagerie, shadow box, 1859 ledger and four daguerreotype frames, 18½ x 12½ x 2¼ in.
“My animals come from myths as I would imagine them, such as Coyote, the trickster, always impeccably dressed in Victorian fashion, but he wears cowboy boots with stars as well as braids,” the artist says. “Back in the 19th century when Manifest Destiny was so popular, the colonists took what they wanted from Native Americans, but [Natives] also took from the colonists, so it is that push-and-pull tension that gives life to all my animals, so they can tell their stories.” The trickster Coyote can be seen in pieces like Coyote Dances With a Star and Fox and Coyote, Enjoying Grape Soda, Laugh about the Tricks They have Played on Each Other.
Ancestors, mixed media drawing on 1909 ledger paper, 12 x 15 in.
“Native American mythology is rich in symbolism and cosmology. Legends involving sky beings, animal spirits, shapeshifters and the elemental forces align well with speculative fiction and Steampunk’s emphasis on the mystical and mechanical,” Arriola continues. “What if Indigenous cultures had developed their own forms of steampunk technology? What if the Industrial Age happened on our terms?”
An upcoming exhibition at Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery in Tucson, Arizona, will be showcasing these new works. Julia Arriola: Reframing Myth opens Friday, December 12, with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. The artist will be in attendance in the gallery. —
Coyote Dances with a Star, mixed media drawing on 1909 ledger paper, 12 x 15 in.
Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery 6872 E. Sunrise Drive, Suite 130 » Tucson, AZ 85750 » (520) 722-7798 » www.medicinemangallery.com
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