When do you work best?
I am snoring most nights by 8 pm because my best work happens between 4 am and 6 am. I love the morning quiet.

How has your practice changed over time?
My practice for a decade was trying to get the world to notice Chilkat and Ravenstail. For this next decade, my focus is about teaching my communities to weave our woolen textiles that record identity, history, story, and dreams.

What fuels you?
Coffee. Connections. Community. Sometimes cookies.

What material do you work with and why?
I was trained to finger-twine ceremonial regalia using 100% merino wool. It’s simple to acquire, and lets us get right to weaving.

How do you get unstuck?
I walk in nature. I call @yourauntiedee. I cry, lay on the floor and deep breathe, or smash pillows with a tennis racket. The most helpful: I do my Morning Pages nearly every day.

Where do you find inspiration?
My dead mother. Historic Ravenstail or Chilkat regalia. Laying in the moss and needles under hemlock trees, looking up at the branches that breathe with universal consciousness.

Who has influenced you and your work?
My aunt Deanna. My late mother, Clarissa. My sister, @kadusne Ursala. My Pappa. My artist friends, near and far. My connection to a Creative Source.  

Who do you hope to influence?
Any artists and not-yet-proclaimed-to-themselves-artists who wonder if “thriving” as an artist is possible. It is. With LOTS of inner work.

Why are you an artist?
I keep looking at job offers (honestly, like once a week or more?) and none are as flexible, freeing, or financially fruitful as being an artist.

What advice would you give other artists?
Stay curious for your next level, whether that means improving your public speaking, learning to write about your work, taking quality photos, or managing your mental and physical health. Surround yourself with words, podcasts, and creatives who inspire you. Keep your consulting team and family close.

What question would you like to ask other artists?
How do you not cry all the time? Also: what do you read or listen to that lights your inner fire each day?