Native/American Fashion: Inspiration, Appropriation, and Cultural Identity explores fashion as a creative endeavor and an expression of cultural identity, the history of Native fashion, issues of problematic cultural appropriation in the field, and examples of creative collaborations and best practices between Native designers and fashion brands. In this segment, we hear from the first panelist to speak on the topic Creative Collaborations, the founder and owner of Beyond Buckskin, Jessica Metcalfe.
Jessica R. Metcalfe (Turtle Mountain Chippewa) is the owner and author of the website Beyond Buckskin, which focuses on all topics related to Native American fashion, including historical adornment, contemporary design, and issues related to cultural appropriation in the fashion industry. She is the owner of the Beyond Buckskin Boutique, which promotes and sells Native American-made couture, streetwear, jewelry, and accessories, and is based out of the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation in Belcourt, North Dakota. Metcalfe, who wrote her doctoral dissertation on Native designers of high fashion, has co-curated exhibitions and taught college courses in Native American studies, studio art, art history, and literature. Her current work focuses on American Indian art, clothing, and design from all time periods, with an emphasis on contemporary artists.