This piece, titled Aquinnah, merges memory, land, and lineage into one visual offering. At its heart is the portrait I painted—a woman brought up within the rich cultural legacy of the Wampanoag people, the original stewards of Martha’s Vineyard. Her presence is strong yet graceful, her eyes ancient yet timeless, gazing out with a calm authority that invites us to remember. Around her, vibrant blues—evoking the surrounding ocean—merge with the warm tones of feathers and clay, nodding to the sacred cliffs of Aquinnah, which have witnessed centuries of ceremony, struggle, and resilience.
This painting is especially personal to me because I, too, am Afro-Indigenous—of Cherokee, Choctaw, and African American ancestry. I carry in my body the spirit and the stories of those who walked many landscapes and endured many silences. My creative practice is an act of remembrance, reclamation, and love for those whose histories are often fragmented, forgotten, or erased. In painting this woman, I am painting a reflection of myself, and of so many others who live at the intersection of multiple lineages—each rooted in survival, kinship, and ancestral pride. Her gaze holds the resilience of my grandmothers and the sovereignty of the lands that shaped them.
The image used for this blog brings my vision full circle. It features a photograph I took of the Aquinnah Cliffs—majestic, multicolored, and enduring. Placing the painting against this landscape was intentional: it is a reminder that identity is not separate from place. The cliffs are more than geological wonder; they are spiritual terrain, layered with ancestral echoes and embedded truths. The woman in the painting becomes a guardian of this sacred shoreline—an embodiment of both land and spirit. Her beadwork, feathers, and ocean-hued garment mirror the wild beauty of the cliffs behind her, anchoring her not just in memory but in the living present.
Today, the Wampanoag people remain very much alive and active in Aquinnah and beyond. Pow wows are still held—gatherings of culture, kinship, and pride where traditional dancing, drumming, and regalia reflect both ancient practice and modern presence. There is also a growing movement to reclaim the Wôpanâak language, a once-silenced tongue that is now being spoken again by new generations. Through this artwork, I honor not only the ancestors, but the descendants—those who continue to live, love, resist, and rise on this sacred land. Aquinnah is a prayer in paint, a portrait of continuity, and a visual song for those who remember who they are and where they come from.
She Lives Where Sky Meets Sea
She lives where sky meets the sea,
where the ocean knows her name—
it carries her in its mirrored light,
each wave a whisper of kin
whose footprints shaped this shore
before time was counted in calendars.
Her braids are black rivers threading memory—
a witness carved from color and earth,
woven from stories older than maps,
rooted in the breath of clay and tide.
Feathers rise from her hair like prayers,
taught by wind and thunderbird dreams.
They do not flutter—they remember.
They lift in sacred silence,
like smoke from a long-burning fire.
She walks in two directions at once—
toward the ancestors and toward the future.
In a world that tries to split her in half,
she sings herself whole—
a drumbeat of names that refuse to disappear.
Look into her eyes—
sometimes the past lingers there,
a shadow that shapes her gaze,
but always what endures shines through:
what pulses through blood and bone,
what rises in those still unseen.
Aquinnah is available for purchase. Collect it today!