Tananáwit: A Community of Warm Springs Artists

Tananáwit: A Community of Warm Springs Artists

Warm Springs, Oregon

First Nations established the Native Arts Initiative (NAI) in 2014 to provide direct grantmaking, networking opportunities, and training and technical assistance (TTA) to Native-led arts and cultural hubs who are working to preserve and advance traditional Native arts through programming focused on supporting artists and intergenerational sharing of artistic skills and knowledge.

Under the NAI, First Nations provides awarded grantees with organizational and programmatic resources, including direct grants and technical assistance and training. Since 2014, First Nations has awarded more than $3.5 million in grant funds to a variety of eligible, Native-controlled nonprofit organizations and tribal government programs under the NAI.

2023-2025 Native Arts Initiative

About Tananáwit

Tananáwit: A Community of Warm Springs Artists is a nonprofit, community-based arts organization that supports Native artists from the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs through educational and economic development opportunities. Artists are given a workspace, tools, supplies, and transportation to create their art and sell it locally. Tananáwit hosts many art shows throughout the year featuring traditional and contemporary artists. The organization also offers cultural classes for adults and youth taught by master artists with a deep commitment to share intergenerational knowledge and diverse Native art styles.

How First Nations Will Help

Funding from First Nations will support multigenerational pottery, moccasin-making, beadwork, drum-making, and weaving classes, in addition to augmenting general operating support. Funds will also support updates to the Tananáwit website to improve functionality and offer relevant content to better serve and engage its communities.

Community Partner Q&A

Cultural treasures imply a history, things that were passed down long ago by our ancestors who made them because they had to. For instance, our ancestors made baskets to collect and gather food. Later, we adorned them with designs or beadwork, not realizing it was art. But it evolved into a wonderful thing, and now we are trying to sustain that, build on it, and hold on to our culture.

We are a small community of artists, teachers, and students, and our shop is 100% Native American. We have grown from working with 20 artists to 55, and they are at the heart of our organization. We empower them, and teach them how to sell their art, both here and with other vendors. We can tell customers anything they want to know about the artists, which is a great selling point. To help sustain our culture, we offer art and cultural classes for youth, adults, and elders. In our classes, we encourage interaction between youth and elders to bring generations together to learn. And we see that happening. A 12-year-old student learned how to make a miniature gathering basket, and we clapped when she was done. Later, she made more baskets and gifted them to elders. That’s what it’s all about.

Learn more about Tananáwit