Renowned author Louise Erdrich, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, and others tied to the Indigenous arts say they communicate a strong message: “We are still here.” Carrie Moran McCleary, who lives on the Crow Reservation in Montana but is Little Shell Chippewa, is a designer of Indigenous fashions. The traditional arts of Native Americans provide a window into their experiences as human beings, she said.
“Art is going to tell stories,” Moran McCleary said. “For me, the story is always going to be: ‘We are still here.’” That prevailing and rallying message will take center stage July 13 during the Montana Folk Festival in Uptown Butte.
The work of Moran McCleary and four other Indigenous fashion designers will be featured during the First Peoples’ Native Fashion Show. The one-hour show will begin at 5 p.m.
at the Original Mineyard main stage. The First Peoples’ fashion show has been held in years past during the folk festival. But this will be its first year occupying the high-visibility, high-octane venue at the Original Mineyard.
The move to the festival’s main stage coincides with the national and international embrace of Indigenous fashions, Moran McCleary said. The momentum gained strength in 2020, she said, when the U.S.
began to pay more attention to the riches of diversity. Some Indigenous designers gained a foothold in the larger fashion industry by collaborating with luxury brands, “big upscale brands,” Moran McCleary said. .
