Eric Tippeconnic, Native American

Born of a Comanche father who worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a Danish mother, I grew up on diverse Native American reservations. My art is inspired by the feelings I remember when I witnessed tribal dances, and my love of history. While I honor and recognize the inherent value of Native American history, and the unbroken connection we have with our roots, my artwork is not the result of a desire to depict a romanticized and stagnant expression of a bygone historical era. Rather, it’s my hope that the aesthetic qualities of my work and the movement that it captures serve as a metaphor for the viewer—boldly stating that Native American cultures, while intimately connected to their historical roots, are in fact contemporary, alive, and constantly evolving.

Eric Tippeconnic is an enrolled member of the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma, a professional artist, and Professor of American Indian Studies (Ph.D. History) at California State University, San Marcos.