Best of Show for the 103rd annual Santa Fe Indian Market went to Regina Free (Chickasaw), a relative newcomer to this market. She lives near the tallgrass prairie in Oklahoma and used many upcycling components, including reclaimed railroad ties and scrap metal from her rural homestead. Her sculpture reflects the powerful nature of the American bison. She says, “He sees that you’re there, but he doesn’t care.”
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Best of Show Winner
Regina Free (Chickasaw), Windswept (Bison), 2025, mixed-media, Best of Show and Best of Classification V.
Classification Winners
The 2025 SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market Best of Classification winners are as follows.
I. Jewelry: Janalee Reano Valencia (San Felipe Pueblo)
II. Pottery: Chris Youngblood (Santa Clara Pueblo) and Jennifer Tafoya (Santa Clara Pueblo)
III. Painting/Drawings/Graphics/Photography: Santiago Romero (Cochiti/Taos/Santa Ana Pueblos)
IV. Wooden Pueblo Figurative Carvings and Sculpture: Robert Stephen Albert (Hopi)
V. Sculpture: Regina Free (Chickasaw)
VI. Textiles: Lola Cody (Diné)
VII. Diverse Arts: Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti)
VIII. Beadwork/Quillwork: Jackie Larson Bread (Blackfeet)
IX. Youth: Naats Tla’a (Tlingit)
X. Moving Images: suspended
XI. Basketry: Theresa Secord (Penobscot)
Special Award Winner
The IAIA Distinguished Alumni Award went to Emmett Navakuku (Hopi), and Native American Art Magazine‘s Award of Excellence went to Carol Emarthle-Douglas (Northern Arapaho/Seminole).
Links
- 2025 Native Art Week advice and events
- Previous years’ winners
- SWAIA Indigenous Fashion Show 2022, by Michelle J. Lanteri, PhD
- In-Person Indian Market Returns This August, by Audrey Rubenstein, 2021
- The Gaussoin Family Reflects on Native Art Week, by America Meredith (Cherokee Nation), 2021
- Reflections on the 2018 SWAIA Couture Fashion Show, by Stacy Pratt, PhD (Mvskoke), 2018