Editor's note: This is the second story in a series of profiles featuring LGBTQIA+ artists in the F-M community during Pride Month, celebrated each June. FARGO — In many Indigenous communities, two-spirited people experience gender on a spectrum. They often become makers and healers.
Anna Johnson, an artist and enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain band of Chippewa Indians, is two-spirit and a maker. Her murals beautify many public spaces, such as the International Market building on Main Avenue in Fargo and the Midtown Plaza on University, and most recently at New Story Counseling along 13th Ave. S.
But her murals aren’t just pretty to look at. They tell important stories, encourage community connectedness and represent her lived experience as a Native American and a lesbian living in a red state, as well as an activist who knows representation matters. “I’m two-spirited, and what that means to me is bringing inclusivity into everything I do,” she said.
“For me as an artist, because I’m Native American, that’s my number one thing. If you were going to rank my traits, yes, I’m a woman. Yes, I’m a Native American.
Yes, I’m gay.” Johnson frequently includes LGBTQ+ themes in her work by painting scenes from Indigenous stories, adding rainbows and other symbols synonymous with queer culture. “As a Native American, I want to keep our stories alive,” she said.
“And gay it up a little.” Johnson recently completed a commission for New Story Counseling.
