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In the NoCo
In The NoCo

Artist Danielle SeeWalker on her canceled Vail residency

By In The NoCo,
Ariel Lavery, Erin O'Toole
Published May 21, 2024 at 5:40 AM MDT
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Danielle SeeWalker holds her recently created piece titled G is for Genocide. "I have always focused on creating art based on what I'm feeling, thinking, [or] what inspires me, and I never apologize or regret putting any type of artwork out there."
Courtesy of Danielle SeeWalker
Danielle SeeWalker holds her recently created piece titled G is for Genocide. "I have always focused on creating art based on what I'm feeling, thinking, [or] what inspires me, and I never apologize or regret putting any type of artwork out there."

Danielle SeeWalker is a H煤艐kpap葻a Lak葻贸ta artist living and working in Denver. incorporates traditional Native American materials and themes.

This past January, SeeWalker was approached and offered a residency by the town of Vail. The residency would have included SeeWalker creating a public mural. However, on May 9, town officials backed out on that plan. They stated a concern about the politicization of their public art program.

Vail officials pointed to SeeWalker鈥檚 recent social media posts sharing a painting she had created, called "G is for Genocide." The piece is a statement on the conflict in Gaza. The painting depicts a person wearing a keffiyeh 鈥� a traditional Palestinian scarf 鈥� as well as a braid, a feather and other traditional Native American imagery.

The rescinded offer became a social media firestorm for both SeeWalker and the town. Vail released on May 14. They apologized for inconveniencing SeeWalker. But they also defended their decision, saying they could not 鈥渟upport messaging that targets one group of residents or guests over another.鈥�

SeeWalker spoke with host Erin O鈥橳oole about why she painted 鈥淕 is for Genocide,鈥� her ideas for the mural she had planned for Vail and whether this experience will change her approach to art.

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In The NoCo Artist InterviewNative Americans
In The NoCo
KUNC's In The NoCo is a daily slice of stories, news, people and issues. It's a window to the communities along the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The show brings context and insight to the stories of the day, often elevating unheard voices in the process. And because life in Northern Colorado is a balance of work and play, we celebrate the lighter side of things here, too.
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Ariel Lavery
Ariel Lavery grew up in Louisville, Colorado and has returned to the Front Range after spending over 25 years moving around the country. She co-created the podcast Middle of Everywhere for WKMS, Murray State University鈥檚 NPR member station, and won Public Media Journalism awards in every season she produced for Middle of Everywhere. Her most recent series project is "The Burn Scar", published with The Modern West podcast. In it, she chronicles two years of her family鈥檚 financial and emotional struggle following the loss of her childhood home in the Marshall Fire.
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Erin O'Toole
As the host of KUNC鈥檚 new program and podcast In the NoCo, I work closely with our producers and reporters to bring context and diverse perspectives to the important issues of the day. Northern Colorado is such a diverse and growing region, brimming with history, culture, music, education, civic engagement, and amazing outdoor recreation. I love finding the stories and voices that reflect what makes NoCo such an extraordinary place to live.
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