I’ve got lots of new friends here, so let me re-introduce myself. 🖤
I’m an artist of mixed Kanyen’kehá:ka, Irish, and French-Canadian heritage, raised in the Niagara Region. My lineage carries Kanyen’kehá:ka and Irish roots through my mom, and French-Canadian heritage through my dad. Like many Indigenous families, my story is one of reconnection—held with care, guided by community, and done with intention.
With humility and respect, I’m reconnecting with my Kanyen’kehá:ka heritage through the teachings of my maternal grandfather. I’m a member of the Kenhtè:ke Longhouse, where I sit with the Wolf Clan, and I ground my work as an artist and scholar in the principles of the Great Law of Peace.
My beadwork brings together traditional Haudenosaunee raised techniques and contemporary methods to create detailed, three-dimensional designs that honour Haudenosaunee artistry. Rooted in relationships, my work has been shared with Indigenous Matriarchs and Patriarchs across Turtle Island.
Through community workshops, I share beadwork as a way to foster connection, support well-being, and carry stories forward. This work is part of a larger commitment to cultural resurgence and carrying our traditions into future generations.
📸: portrait by @nalakwsis .
✨ CALL FOR INDIGENOUS ARTISTS & MAKERS ✨
We are inviting Indigenous artists to apply to be part of the Arts of the Land Pavilion at Artfest Kingston.
The Arts of the Land Pavilion is an Indigenous-led, curated space that brings together artists working across a range of mediums — including beadwork, quillwork, pottery, hide work, carving, and more. This space centres work that engages with land-based materials, processes, and knowledge, alongside contemporary practices.
🌿 Why “Arts of the Land”?
This pavilion recognizes that land-based practices are not just historical — they are living, evolving, and being carried forward today. Artists continue to work with materials like clay, hide, quills, antler, and plant fibres in ways that reflect both continuity and innovation.
🧡 This space exists to:
• Support Indigenous artists
• Increase visibility of Indigenous art practices
• Create meaningful and respectful engagement with the public
We also honour the legacy of Jay Bell Redbird, who established this pavilion in 2017 as a space for Indigenous artists to gather, share, and be present within Artfest Kingston.
✨ As the pavilion moves forward, Arts of the Land reflects a continued commitment to Indigenous creativity — grounded in land, knowledge, and future-facing practices.
👉 Apply through the link in our bio.
📅 Details and deadlines are available in the application form.
I love how this butterfly purple pair of raised beadwork earrings turned out 💜🦋
This morning, I had the immense privilege of listening to Marie Wilson and Stephen Kakfwi speak. Their words, truth, and generosity in sharing lived experience were incredibly powerful. I also had the honour of gifting Marie this pair of earrings — a small offering of gratitude for the work she has carried for so many years.
It feels especially meaningful to share that this means I have now created beadwork that has been gifted to two of the three Truth and Reconciliation Commissioners. That is not something I take lightly. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada called on all of us to do better — in education, in governance, in relationships, and in how we walk alongside one another in truth.
As someone working in Indigenous education and reconciliation every day, this moment felt deeply full circle. My beadwork practice is rooted in story, relationship, and responsibility — and to see it travel into spaces of such important national work reminds me why I create.
I feel so grateful that my work has been lovingly gifted to people doing work I care so deeply about. Education, truth, and reconciliation are not abstract ideas to me — they are daily commitments. And sometimes, those commitments are carried through beads, butterflies, and purple thread.
Nyá:wen for the privilege of this morning. 💛
On the night the story ends. 🖤
This Stranger Things–inspired raised beadwork piece plays with liminal space. That in-between place where worlds overlap, fear meets courage, and things aren’t quite what they seem. I turned a raised beadwork “floral” into my version of a demogorgan emerging from the Upside Down.
Stories matter because they show us how to get through hard things together. As the final episode airs tonight, this piece is a small nod to that idea, made slowly, bead by bead.
🏷️:
#strangerthings #strangerthingsfinale #demogorgon #upsidedown #fanart
Shé:kon! 👋🏼 We are popping on here to let everyone know that we are still active and creating. We’ve been busy preparing for the Indigenous Holiday Market on December 7th in collaboration with @modernfuelarc . It’s going to be an awesome day and we hope to see you there! 🗓️✨
In the meantime, please enjoy this special moment with us. This brooch is Liv’s first completed Haudenosaunee raised beadwork piece. She is thankful to @beadedbydawn for teaching her and for sharing her pattern. Building a community of Haudenosaunee women who share their knowledge, art, and friendship with one another has been a pretty wonderful part of this learning journey.
This brooch will be donated to the @tsi_tyonnheht_onkwawenna online auction. Check out their Facebook page to learn more about it.
🏷️:
#haudenosaunee #haudenosauneeartist #haudenosauneewomen #haudenosauneebeadwork #haudenosauneeraisedbeadwork #raisedbeadwork
Thank you, Katarokwi Palestine Solidarity and members of the Indigenous community for hosting a community conversation on Gaza and settler colonialism. Those who attended had the fortunate opportunity to hear from Indigenous community members and Palestine solidarity activists, Christi Belcourt, Wanda Nanibush, and Nasrin Himada.
I was given the fortunate opportunity to bead gifts for those who shared their voices at the event. I chose to bead an olive tree branch after reading an article written by Ruwaida Amer that spoke about the olive tree as a symbol of Palestine and a mute victim of the war on Gaza. Many families have been forced to cut and destroy their trees to burn them for fires to cook, stay warm, and heat water for bathing. These trees were a part of families lives, they have been life companions, and they hold beautiful memories in their roots. For years the trees have taken care of these families and they are now mourning the loss of them.
The olive tree is seen by many Palestinians as a symbol of their connection to the land. The relationship and reciprocity shared with trees is something that I could relate to through my teachings as a Kanyen’kehá:ka woman. When we see trees as our living relatives who take care of us in so many different ways, we can empathize with the loss and grief that comes with the destruction of land and displacement caused by war.
This pin was a gift for activist and artist, Christi Belcourt. I hope that they will wear it proudly in solidarity with Palestine as we all continue to use our voices to raise awareness about the ongoing war on Gaza and call to cease fire now. 🇵🇸
Shé:kon! 👋🏼
We are slowly getting back into creating after the holidays! In the meantime, we thought we’d share some of our past projects!
In 2022, Liv had the privilege of beading a hat for the Honourable Murray Sinclair’s installation as the 15th Chancellor of Queen’s University. This was such a special project and we are thankful to have been chosen to contribute to his regalia alongside many other talented Indigenous artists.
🏷️:
#indigenousart #indigenousbeadwork #indigenousartist #beadwork #beadedhat #beadedhatband #beadworkartist #beading #queensuniversity #haudenosauneeartist
