While traveling in Italy Kay WalkingStick created “Venere Alpina” (Alpine Venus). Inspired by the Italian Alps, she painted mountains in warm browns, luscious greens and soft pinks to create a mountainscape that mimics the folds and nuances of the female body. On the right, a rough and rust-colored “steel” panel suggests deterioration and the passage of time. In the center of this panel, WalkingStick created a slit to allow the viewer to see under the surface. The gems and rocks inside refer to the treasures that lie beneath the earth’s weathered and aged surface.

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From the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery website:

“Women have long been the creative force behind Native American art, yet their individual contributions have been largely unrecognized, instead treated as anonymous representations of entire cultures. ‘Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists’ explores the artistic achievements of Native women and establishes their rightful place in the art world.”

Best to view in "Original" because other versions resized by Pbase are decidedly unsharp.

‘It’s in Our DNA, It’s Who We Are,’ Anita Fields (Osage), 2018, posted earlier: