Genia, Erin

Erin Genia's art often explores issues that draw on her mixed heritage: she is a member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate in South Dakota, descended from the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa, as well as Irish and Italian from NY. After studying Native American literature and sculpture at Cornell University, she went on to the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico, training in three-dimensional arts with a focus on sculpture, ceramics, and jewelry. 

Finishing her undergraduate degree, and then her Master of Public Administration-Tribal Governance degree at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, Genia studied art theory, installation, multi-media arts, metal casting and mural arts, with graduate work focusing on tribal cultural and heritage resource protections. 

She states, “utilizing my skill in both two- and three- dimensional techniques, I create works which explore the human implications of systematized oppression – such as war, poverty, violence and globalization. My work also expresses my commitment to the movement for social justice and human rights while examining my evolving identity within the framework of decolonization.” Genia has exhibited her art throughout the United States.

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Chair Affair Artist

Erin Genia's art often explores issues that draw on her mixed heritage: she is a member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate in South Dakota, descended from the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa, as well as Irish and Italian from NY. After studying Native American literature and sculpture at Cornell University, she went on to the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico, training in three-dimensional arts with a focus on sculpture, ceramics, and jewelry. 

Finishing her undergraduate degree, and then her Master of Public Administration-Tribal Governance degree at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, Genia studied art theory, installation, multi-media arts, metal casting and mural arts, with graduate work focusing on tribal cultural and heritage resource protections. 

She states, “utilizing my skill in both two- and three- dimensional techniques, I create works which explore the human implications of systematized oppression – such as war, poverty, violence and globalization. My work also expresses my commitment to the movement for social justice and human rights while examining my evolving identity within the framework of decolonization.” Genia has exhibited her art throughout the United States.

Giving and Receiving

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Today is March 8th, International Women’s Day, and I made “Giving & Receiving” as a tribute to the women in my life on whom I depend: My mother, sisters, daughters, grandmothers, cousins, aunts, and friends. These women provide me with essential stability and support, so I chose a chair that is sturdy. When embellishing this chair, I wanted to give the sitter a space to feel open and receptive, able to connect with their own humanity. “Giving & Receiving” is an expression of how the love the women in our lives gives us connects us to our own humanity.