SWAIA ARTIST Profile

Aspen Decker

Name
Aspen Decker
Tribe
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
Main Classification
Classification #2
Classification #3

SWAIA Booth History

SFIM25
MAR 807
WIM24
SFIM24

SWAIA Highlight History

Featured in 2024
Read Here

2024 Award History

N/A
Portfolio Example & Artist Statement
Aspen Decker

My artistic process integrates mediums such as antique maps and ledger paper, colored pencil, ink, and natural pigments reflecting the interconnectedness of place, history, and oral tradition. Through these pieces, I aim to visually preserve oral stories, honor Salish teachings, and strengthen cultural memory. My ledger art, in particular, connects the past and present, using antique maps to place Indigenous stories back onto landscapes where these histories unfolded. I employ Salish designs and traditional beadwork aesthetics to breathe life into these works, ensuring the identity and teachings live on for future generations. All of my artwork is framed with conservation museum glass. Ancestral Indigenous knowledge and language is at the heart of my work. As a Salishlanguage speaker and ledger artist, my artwork connects to my Sqelixw ‘Indigenous’ ways of knowing. I believe X̣sx̣séčst ‘doing something good with your hand’s/art', will leave good marks on our homelands.’

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