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    Meridians Art Basel Miami Beach 2023

    December 8-10, 2023

    Booth M16

    In the Meridians sector, Julie Buffalohead’s monumental painting is inspired by the Iroquois creation myth of the Sky Woman, who is in harmony with swans, turtles, and other animals. In the tale, birds flock to buffer her fall from the sky, while other animals dive into the ocean to retrieve mud to build the land.

    Surrounded by celestial blue hues, various creatures float from the womb of a birthing mother. Together, a red fox, deer, coyotes, ermine, and otters form a ring within the blue nothingness, as though creating the world itself.
    In the painting's right panel, geometric Native ribbon work transmutes into a pattern of uteruses. An otter appears among them with a handful of mud that reads “choice.” For Buffalohead, the painting signals the beauty of autonomy and affirms the divine right to control one’s own body.