In this conversation artist April Holder and I talk about motherhood, naming the narrow lens of social media, the accessible art of printmaking, dismantling the myth of loneliness, allowing our community (including cis men) to practice vulnerability as an act of repair, and to never back down from being the complex multi-dimensional people we all are. April reminds us that no matter how much we ‘do it the right way’, haters gonna hate and love will find its way to us, and she asks us to remember that we shape our own reality and gives us the task to LOVE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

I first met April Holder smoking cigs outside of a warehouse on the southside of Santa Fe, NM in the early 2000’s at the Humble art space. She had purple or blue or green hair, a leather jacket studded up and sharp biting wit that is so rare these tender days, it was everything we could do to not spend the whole evening laughing when there was a show to put on. I was invited there as a DJ to play a set by fellow local DJ the Werewulf Micah Wesley, also an incredible painter. Little did I know that That time would become many times and a lifelong building of friendship and family would result, Including April. Today, we are witnessing our children become best friends, we are growing and inviting changed world views and better behaviours, we are supporting each other's goals and work and hearing the pain and evolution of being in community that can’t always appreciate or understand us or our growth as weird ass boss babe in between spaces human type beings. April is on fire, always reflecting back the idea that love is truly what will move us forward collectively and I am proud to call her a sister.

April Holder with a painting in progress at the Institute of American Indian Arts AIR program, 2021. Image by Broken Boxes Podcast

April Holder is a Sac and Fox, Wichita and Tonkawa woman, whose ancestral lands run through Oklahoma and was born and raised in Shawnee. April’s artistic practice is a celebration of Indigenous women, an honoring of the land and animals, and the critical connections between. As an Indigenous woman, a mother and an artist, April recognizes the responsibility she has to create a healthy space for women like herself to thrive far into the future.

April’s focus is in painting and printmaking, and she carries an understanding that the creative process itself can have an environmental impact. She strives to lessen this by using recycled materials such as fabric, household objects and thread; all found or sourced from thrift stores.

April’s work presents a visual interpretation of the vulnerable and strong stories of Indigenous women, such as herself, while creating connection, continuum and a healthy way forward for her communities to reclaim their power.

Follow April Holder on Instagram @aeon_fluxus

Final track on this episode is the song POWERFUL by Am-Mer-Ah-Su

This conversation was hosted by Ginger Dunnill of Broken Boxes Podcast