Sage Mountainflower: House of Fashion is a wearable arts exhibition on view in the Artists Circle Gallery from March 15, 2025 through July 13, 2025 that connects fashion of the Pueblos with haute couture. Led by artist Sage Mountainflower (Ohkay Owingeh/Taos Pueblo/Diné), this exhibition showcases the artist's contemporary clothing designs inspired by the visual patterns and textures of her home and her experiences in the fashion world from Tewa lands to those abroad. It brings together layered narratives of community and cultural landscapes, sharing stories of the land with audiences.

Dr. Michelle Lanteri, Museum Head Curator, stated, "In northern New Mexico, Sage Mountainflower's 'House of Fashion' studio is at Ohkay Owingeh. There, she creates fashion designs rooted in Pueblo and Diné values that bridge fashion world couture with Southwest Indigenous apparel. Each fashion line carries Native stories, and those stories move from the Pueblos to places abroad, like Paris and Milan."

Mountainflower regularly shows her designs at runways near and far every year. She has participated in Paris Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, and many events in New Mexico, such as the Pathways Fashion Showcase, Native Guitars Tour, and the Feast Day Best Fashion Show at her "House of Fashion" studio at Ohkay Owingeh.

Mountainflower's most renowned fashion line is the Phendi, or "black," Tewa Collection. The concepts at the heart of this collection come from the black-on-black Tewa pottery designs by trailblazer artists Maria Martinez (ca. 1887-1980) and Julian Martinez (1879-1943) and their descendants from the Tewa village of San Ildefonso Pueblo. Mountainflower's motifs of stepped terraces, suggesting clouds and the land, and the avanyu, a serpent and guardian of water, are displayed in appliqued fabric to create a double texture akin to the matte and burnished surfaces of black-on-black pottery. Honoring this meaningful connection, some of the Martinez family's pottery from the IPCC Collection will be shown alongside Mountainflower's work.

About the Artist:

Based in northern and central New Mexico, Sage Mountainflower is a midcareer Native American fashion artist of Ohkay Owingeh, Taos Pueblo, and Diné heritage who creates haute couture and tribal community clothing through the lenses of Pueblo and Diné aesthetics. Her artistic journey began with creating both Pueblo regalia and contemporary attire for her children. Now, after more than a decade in the fashion world, she designs fashion ensembles that reflect her Indigenized and personalized approach to high fashion, rooted in sharing her stories from home. Mountainflower's distinctive style utilizes materials like satin, sequins, lace, and wool, often enhanced by intricate beadwork—an artistic practice that she learned from her family. Her diverse fashion lines reflect her background as an environmental scientist. Mountainflower's designs embody the deep complexity and unwavering nourishment of the natural world.

Location: Artists Circle Gallery

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