Adrionna Otis first started making beadwork last year. The 16-year-old says her first project — a pair of earrings she made with her sister's help — took about three hours from start to finish.
“Immediately, it clicked for me,” she said. Her latest pair of earrings emulates a blooming flower. She used white beads in a circular pattern with two rows of gold beads as the edging.
Indigenous beadwork uses fine glass seed beads often sewn onto leather or cloth for jewelry, bags, clothing and other items. Otis says she mainly beads earrings, but sometimes she will venture into other projects, like a beaded phone strap.
“That one took me a couple days, but it wasn't extremely hard,” Otis said.
For Otis, creating wearable items helps her feel more connected to her Ojibwe identity and culture.
She recently walked the runway in a fashion show in northern Minnesota at Fortune Bay Resort Casino, located near Lake Vermillion. The show, titled Miskwaa Niigaan, or “Red Future,” showcased Native youth and their creations.
Bois Forte Band of Lake Superior Chippewa citizen Deanna Drift is the American Indian education coordinator for the St. Louis County Schools, a geographically large school district in northeastern Minnesota.
Drift says the event brought together students from across the district and the Bois Forte Band’s education and employment training program. She, alongside other organizers, put the show together to “uplift youth” through self-expression of their Native identity.
“I think the main goal behind it was just to instill self-esteem and pride in who they are,” Drift said.
Exploring identity
The students shared their beadwork, ribbon skirts and regalia while a crowd of parents and community members filled the ballroom in support.
Otis says it was her first time participating in an event like the fashion show. She was nervous backstage, but she also felt excited. She traveled from the Cloquet area, where she attends South Ridge School, for the occasion.
“It makes me feel really happy to be able to be here with other people who might even be in the same boat as I am,” said Otis.
She describes herself as having mixed heritage and someone who is “white presenting.”
Otis was adopted by a family from the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. Her family of origin is from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
“Even though [I’m] adopted into a Native American family, it's been hard to figure out stuff about myself and just what my culture really is,” she said.
And it was through art and fashion that she found a sense of belonging after feeling uncertain of her identity when she was younger.
Otis has always been interested in art and fashion, and she says beadwork and exploring different forms of creativity, like making ribbon skirts, have allowed her to explore her Native identity.
Ribbon skirts are traditional handmade garments made from fabric adorned with ribbon designs and are typically worn during ceremonies or celebratory gatherings in tribal communities.
“Beading, sewing — it just really helps me feel a lot more connected,” Otis said.
Drift says she’s observed Otis having an interest in her culture — she’s taking an Ojibwe language class at her school and participates in cultural activity workshops. She recently made a floral ribbon skirt with red and black satin ribbons through a cultural workshop offered through her school, which she wore to the fashion show.
“As mentors, we look at what interests them and then really try to make that happen for them,” Drift said.
Busy parent Earl Otis attended the show. He enjoys seeing his daughter embrace beadwork and sewing.
“I like seeing her doing that a lot,” he said. “It's nice to see her get more involved now.”
Inspiring others
Before the lights dimmed to begin the show, Otis shared backstage that she wanted to inspire others to embrace their identities just as she had.
“I'm hoping I can make other people feel better about themselves, especially if there's anyone who feels the same way as me sitting in the audience,” Otis said.
Music produced by local Native artists played during the event as youth were called onto the stage one by one to show off their creations. The announcer called the powwow regalia category first.
Otis wore her ribbon skirt and earrings on the stage. She says she initially felt embarrassed, but that feeling went away after the first few moments of standing in front of everyone. She walked down the runway with a confident smile on her face.
Afterward, Otis shared how she felt about being on stage. She says she loved being able to be a part of the experience and to be able to share that experience with fellow students who were feeling nervous as she had been before the show.
She even felt that she may have inspired those that were in the audience.
“I definitely felt like everybody was appreciating my work, and just happy that I was there — just like I was happy all of them were there,” Otis said.
Chandra Colvin covers Native American communities in Minnesota for MPR News via Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities.
