Cover Up

For this month's blog, I've connected with emerging artist Robyn Tsinnajinnie (Diné) in preparation for K Art Gallery's inclusion at the 2022 Art Basel Miami Beach Art Fair. Tsinnajinnie will be one of three artists in our Nova booth (N14) alongside Erin Ggaadimits Ivalu Gingrich (Inupiaq/Koyukon Athabaskan) and Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds (Arapaho/Cheyenne). 

Among many obstacles as an artist and individual, painting and women seemed to make the most sense to the twenty-five-year-old. The women in her life's words and stories left an impression - the common thread of fear and societal expectations. Consequently, Tsinnajinnie began to analyze power structures established against women, and she now pursues painting to depict her frustrations.

While her ideas stem from anger, her works are created with satire to invite her audience to laugh about ridiculous stereotypes, albeit uncomfortably. She illustrates women in dominant positions while also placing them in stereotypical environments. Their positions give more power and motivation for other women to address harsh realities and help create conversations that need to happen amongst everyone. Male figures enter her work occasionally though their inclusion isn't necessary. She places them in undesirable positions, never portraying them wholly, reducing them to props.

For Art Basel Miami Beach, K Art Gallery will present a range of the emerging artists' work. Cover Up, 2021, is a piece highlighting the controversy surrounding public breastfeeding. Stretching at 48 x 48 inches, Tsinnajinnie creates a dinner scene for a sole mother in blue breastfeeding her golden child. She stares directly at the viewer as a firm declaration of maternal sovereignty. On-lookers turn from behind but are blinded by the white fabric. Her characters are always painted in various colors to platform the everyday woman's experience beyond notions of race.

Robyn explains, "The reason why I painted Cover Up was that I thought it was ridiculous that women had to cover up to feed their child and the rules women had to live and abide by… We can't even be mothers correctly."

The Diné painter adorns the mother's table with several sweets and treats, withering sunflowers, and fine silverware. Inspired by the works of Wayne Thiebaud, Tsinnajinnie touches on the innutritious foods present on the Reservation. Food supply is limited in her community – commodity cheeses and meats, and processed snacks dominate the shelves – and indirectly weakens infants' nutrient supply. "Native women only have this access on the Rez," she says. "It's silly, and it makes me mad. I'm going to be a mother one day, and it's disheartening knowing that other Native women are forced to eat what we are given."

She says, "Breastfeeding is now toxic."

Due to its powerful message, it took two years for the Navajo painter to complete Cover Up (2019-2021). Albeit an emerging artist, Tsinnajinnie continues the dialogue to speak on issues surrounding womanhood in domesticity and social settings. With Navajo imagery, art historical references, and a pop-art palette, the young artist is making a satirical yet severe statement of feminine empowerment.

Tsinnajinnie is a developing artist with exhibitions from the American Southwest to the Northeast and is included in the permanent collection of the Mattatuck Museum (Waterbury, CT) and many private collections.