{"id":15721,"date":"2025-11-06T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/durango-creative-district-hosts-indigenous-comic-book-art-exhibition\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T19:34:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T19:34:52","slug":"durango-creative-district-hosts-indigenous-comic-book-art-exhibition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/durango-creative-district-hosts-indigenous-comic-book-art-exhibition\/","title":{"rendered":"Durango Creative District hosts Indigenous Comic Book Art Exhibition"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Shamus
Shamus Beyale \u2013 whose \u201cBattle,\u201d digital print, 2025 is seen here \u2013 is one of the artists featured in \u201cSuper-powered Sovereignty\u201d exhibition. (Courtesy of Durango Creative District)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

The Durango Creative District is gathering artists together for its latest exhibit, \u201cSuper-Powered Sovereignty: Indigenous Comic Book Art,\u201d which will kick off with an opening reception Friday at the gallery.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s \u201ca collaborative exhibition highlighting unique Indigenous stories told through the medium of comic book art,\u201d according to a news release. \u201cThis exhibition will feature American Indigenous artists working in the vibrant world of comic book illustration, exploring themes rooted to sovereignty, identity and cultural empowerment through visual storytelling. Original paintings, prints and comic books depicting Indigenous superheroes, protectors and villains will all be on view.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

If you go<\/h4>\n

WHAT: <\/strong>Durango Creative District presents \u201cSuper-Powered Sovereignty: Indigenous Comic Book Art Exhibition.\u201d Andrea Rose Descheenie, guest curator; featuring works by artists Shaun Beyale, Shamus Beyale, Keith Jim, Kayla Shaggy, Rod Velarde and Christian Kee.<\/p>\n

WHEN: <\/strong>Opening reception: 5-8 p.m. Friday, exhibit runs to Nov. 28. Gallery hours: noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Friday; noon to 8 p.m. First Fridays; and by appointment.<\/p>\n

WHERE:<\/strong> Durango Creative District Community Gallery, 1135 Main Ave.<\/p>\n

MORE INFORMATION:<\/strong> Visit www.durangocreativedistrict.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Participating artists aren\u2019t just from Durango \u2013 they include people from New Jersey, Phoenix and the Four Corners. Check out work from: Shaun Beyale, Shamus Beyale, Keith Jim, Kayla Shaggy, Rod Velarde and Durangoan Christian Kee.<\/p>\n

According to the release, these artists \u201chave worked with behemoths like Marvel, Scholastic Inc., and have had work in museum exhibitions, video games and film.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Shaun
Shaun Beyale, \u201cDin\u00e9 (Navajo) Wonder Woman,\u201d digital print, 2018. (Courtesy of Durango Creative District)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The exhibit\u2019s guest curator Andrea Rose Descheenie, a senior at Fort Lewis College, is a contemporary Indigenous artist and curator from the Navajo Nation of Chinle, Arizona. She is majoring in Communication Design with a Certificate in Museum Management, the release said.<\/p>\n

The last time we spoke with FLC graduate Kayla Shaggy, she \u2013 and her art \u2013 had just been featured on an episode of the Netflix reboot of \u201cUnsolved Mysteries.\u201d Since then, she continues her super-prolific pace of releasing comic series, paintings, zines and whatever else she comes up with.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started a new comic series called \u2018Death Becomes Her.\u2019 It\u2019s about lesbian vampires, and I\u2019m working on the sixth issue right now, and it\u2019s been very popular and well received,\u201d she said. \u201cI actually completed a successful crowdfund campaign to print issues one through four. I\u2019ve been working on comics and making comics and attending zine fests and comic fests in the Southwest. I just finished doing a conference in Albuquerque where they used my art for their program.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said she was asked to participate in the comic book show and thought it would be a great way to get back to town.<\/p>\n

\"Kayla
Kayla Shaggy is one of the artists feature din the new exhibit. (Courtesy of Kayla Shaggy)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

She\u2019ll also be at Maria\u2019s Bookshop, 960 Main Ave., from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday to sign copies of her work, which Maria\u2019s has carried for years.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Durango is) where I went to school, and a lot of my friends are still there,\u201d Shaggy said. \u201cI know I have the fanbase there, because Maria\u2019s sells my work, and they\u2019ve been selling my work for years. So it\u2019s kind of like, how does my dad put it? Like stomping grounds, old stomping grounds, plus it\u2019s close to where my parents live. So I would say it\u2019s a little bit of like a homecoming.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said she sees the genre of Indigenous comics becoming more and more popular \u2013 and there may be a practical side to it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think mostly because it\u2019s accessibility, because I know some craft-based work can be very expensive, or you need a mentor who\u2019s very experienced in it,\u201d Shaggy said. \u201cI think too, (with) the Marvel Cinematic Universe and more and more graphic novels are being adapted. So, I think comics are returning, along with rise of zines, like self-published printed material. People like physical media, so yeah, but I think it\u2019s still a growing thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The exhibit at the Durango Creative District accompanies a citywide Native American Heritage Month Celebration coordinated by Durango School District 9R Title VI Indigenous Liaisons, including community-centered events throughout November that honor the cultures, contributions and living traditions of Indigenous peoples in the Four Corners region, the release said.<\/p>\n

And for Shaggy, she said she hopes her art will encourage other people to get their own stories out in the public.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want people to be inspired,\u201d she said. \u201cI think the best thing I can hear from people, especially with my series \u2018Death Becomes Her,\u2019 is it makes people feel seen. It makes people feel heard, and most of all, it makes them want to draw their own story, whether it\u2019s their story or a story that\u2019s been inside of them and they\u2019re worried about sharing it. But then they see me chugging along, and they\u2019re like, \u2018Wow, I want to do that, too.\u2019 You could do that. It\u2019s OK to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

katie@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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