Mixed Blood Guy

The Lakota artist Kevin Pourier created Mixed Blood Guy to reveal his complex feelings of identity, belonging, and disconnection—feelings many people experience today. Wearing his signature hat and sunglasses, Pourier is literally stuck in the middle of two worlds. On either side, wagging fingers criticize him for being too Native American or not Native American enough. Pourier carved his self-portrait into a black buffalo horn and used natural minerals mixed with resin to color the surface. The monarch butterfly above his head, which appears in many of his artworks, came to him during a Lakota ceremony. He sees butterflies as an important connection to his Lakota identity.