‘She wasn’t remotely finished’

An up-and-coming Indigenous artist whose life was cut short, DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo is receiving a posthumous exhibition at the Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos.

“Honoring DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo” includes over 20 works by the artist, who was 29 at the time of her death in 2021. The artworks range from large-format paintings and ledger drawings to illustrations from her children’s book, “Taos Pueblo Fall.”

Suazo was the daughter of Taos Pueblo artist David Gary Suazo and Diné artist Geraldine Tso, and grew up on the Taos Pueblo. She was pursuing a master’s degree in studio art at the Institute of American Indian Arts when she was killed by her boyfriend. She had been named a SITE Santa Fe Scholar earlier that year, as well as a 2021 Taos Fine Arts Visionary Artist. Santiago Martinez pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Museum curator Claire Motsinger said the idea for the exhibition came from another staff member, Islin Wright, who is a member of Taos Pueblo.

“It was his suggestion that we really should do a show,” Motsinger said, “and coming from the community, his emphasis was on domestic violence as an epidemic in Native communities — not just at Taos Pueblo, but beyond — which is something that is common but not discussed.”

Motsinger reached out to Suazo’s parents, who readily agreed to loan works from their collection for the show.

“This is a very special project that was done in complete cooperation and approval of DeAnna’s family,” Motsinger said. “Collaboration doesn’t even begin to describe it.”

A previous exhibition of Suazo’s work, “Traditional Girl with a Contemporary Pop,” was presented at Albuquerque’s Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in 2022. For viewers who saw that show, Millicent Rogers will offer something new.

“The illustrations for the children’s book have never been shown in public before,” Motsinger said.

These illustrations are especially significant, Motsinger said, because they depict everyday life on the Taos Pueblo, as opposed to exoticized or romanticized portrayals.

“In the children’s book, there are many representations of what life at Taos Pueblo looks like, including traditional foodways,” Motsigner said. “That is so special, because you don’t necessarily see that kind of daily life represented. You may see things that are associated with ceremony or are more romanticized or picturesque. But she includes things like … a beautiful view of a fish in a creek, seen from above, because she loved fishing. She had a way of pulling multiple senses into her work as well.”

Much of Suazo’s work was informed by her Taos Pueblo and Diné heritage, but she was also strongly influenced by Japanese anime and manga.

“That style really enchanted her,” Motsinger said. “One of the ways I see it — and it comes through in some of the interviews that she gave — is that anime and manga are such strong, expressive storytelling mediums, and she had a lot of story to tell. ‘This is what my life looks like’ — that’s what she’s telling you by utilizing these expressive narrative styles. So, she took something she loved personally and translated it into a really effective means of communication in her work.”

Additionally, Suazo made ledger art, a pan-Indigenous art form that first emerged among Plains Indians in the latter half of the 19th century. Lacking other resources, they made drawings on the pages of old business ledger books. Later generations of Indigenous artists revived the practice, sometimes viewing it as a symbol of cultural resistance and survival.

“The history of ledger art is very complicated and incredibly resonant and difficult. … And there’s always a question of what paper you’re using and how you’re referencing this very difficult history,” Motsinger said. “But something that DeAnna’s work always brings is joy. Her works are bright and colorful. She uses … humor and beauty. Oftentimes, her figures will be wearing moccasins and traditional skirts and shawls, but with a full face of makeup and nails. So, you have the realization that the traditional and contemporary worlds can come together. And that’s the way she lived her life.”

Motsinger sees Suazo as a self-assured young artist with a singular vision, but also one who was still developing.

“An aspect that adds to the tragedy of her loss is that she wasn’t remotely finished yet,” Motsinger said. “She hadn’t done everything she wanted to do and hadn’t blossomed into the artist she was going to become yet. But you can see that her trajectory would have been extraordinary.”

“Honoring DeAnna Autumn Leaf Suazo” will remain on view through March 1, 2027.

Logan Royce Beitmen is an arts writer for the Albuquerque Journal. He covers visual art, music, fashion, theater and more. Reach him at lbeitmen@abqjournal.com or on Instagram at @loganroycebeitmen.