Avery Underwood

2022 Creative Native Artist

23, Comanche Nation, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, Chickasaw Nation

I wanted to celebrate queer indigeneity. As a person who is transgender, the legitimacy of my identity has always been put into question. Before contact Indigenous peoples had many different forms of gender and sexual expression that fell outside the norms of colonial society. This piece pays homage to the people that came before me who walked similar paths. This piece embraces the knowledge of my ancestors and celebrates the ways they lived and loved. Their life has shaped mine and I embrace the gift of gender expression that they have passed onto me.