From fabric designs to bus layouts and augmented reality (AR), Native American and Spoonflower Artist Marlena Myles is connecting her community to her culture through art. Marlena is a Dakota artist from Saint Paul, Minnesota, who is enrolled in the Spirit Lake Dakota Tribe in North Dakota. Learn how Pokémon GO inspired Marlena to create AR to educate people about her culture, and her tips for artists to be more involved in their community. 

Marlena standing on the sidewalk, in front of a transit bus with her "We Are On Dakota Land" design.
Marlena in front of her “We Are on Dakota Land” bus design.

Marlena’s Art Brings Others Into Her Culture.

Marlena: My art celebrates my culture and shares its traditions, teachings and history with others. Growing up on my people’s traditional homelands in south Minneapolis, I didn’t see much that reflected my culture outside of the urban Native community of Little Earth where I lived, and the Native magnet school I attended. 

A blue mural with tree limbs, leaves, and painted skyline are painted on the side of a building. Animals, teepees, and a Native American couple sittting on a bench are also on the mural. Grass and a road in front of the building are visible as well as a blue sky above. A tree is in the corner.
Marlena’s ‘Kaposia Times’ mural tells the story of the Dakota village of Kaposia, which existed where the current Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul, MN, now stands.

Art also creates a sense of identity and belonging for Native people on our homelands, promoting healing and resilience in a beautiful and empowering way. My people have faced oppression, but my art is a celebration of our strength and perseverance. 

Shop marlena’s designs

Five adults and one child are walking to the right. They are swinging sticks in a round direction. Trees and a blue sky with a setting sun are in their background, with grass below their feet. The character’s swinging motions spell out “google”.
Marlena designs a Google Doodle of Native American women and a child participating in stickball, a ceremonial sport invented by Native American tribes.

As an adult, I use my talents to create visibility and understanding through Dakota art. I want the next generations to feel seen and heard through the work I create, so things are easier for them. I create educational resources such as maps and coloring pages; illustrate books; animate music videos and large-scale art installations in 2D and augmented reality formats. 

A large purple sign with two maps stands on six beams in grass near a street. The sign says “We are on Dakota homelands” with two maps that indicate where sacred lands are in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, and on the Minnesota River Valley. The maps include names and indicators of where the homelands are located.
Dakota land maps illustrate the language and historical homelands of the Dakota people.

Highlighting Culture Through Public Art

A transit bus facing the left at an angle is wrapped with a Native American design and the word, “We are on Dakota Land.” Animated horses, teepees, and birds are on a pastel green, purple, and yellow background. Stripes and a Dakota deco design are also incorporated in the design.
Marlena’s latest installation is described as a “moving mural” with Minneapolis transit buses being wrapped in her “We Are on Dakota Land” design.

Creating the ‘We are on Dakota Homelands’ bus design has been very exciting. My intentions were to create public art that makes Native people feel seen, and I’ve gotten so much positive feedback from folks who say the bus does exactly that for them. Elders say that’s something they would never have expected to see, and they’re happy our histories are being better supported by the greater community. 

Putting Art into Augmented Reality (AR)

A look at the Dakota Spirit Walk augmented reality public art installation through the lens of your device.
A hand holds a phone to show the difference between the augmented reality walk, and actual reality. An animated Native American woman is standing with a bison and earth in front of her. Below the phone is a podium with information about the Sacred Hoop Walk. In the distance is the sacred land being studied by the phone holder.
Visit the Sacred Hoop Walk and learn about the land through Marlena’s AR walk, or through the informational stand.

After seeing the popularity of Pokémon GO, and how it got people engaged and outdoors—I thought the same augmented reality technology could be used to bring people to our significant and sacred sites. I figured I could overlay digital elements and storytelling to show others these ancient stories and teachings without disturbing the land so that the powers held here can continue to be passed down to future generations.

“Elders say that’s something they would never have expected to see, and they’re happy our histories are being better supported by the greater community.” 

People walking in a staggered line are looking at their phones and walking through a grassy area.
Marlena is in the front of this line leading people on the Dakota Spirit Walk as they use their phones to get the AR experience.

Experiencing Dakota culture and teachings through AR offers an innovative and immersive experience that allows people to see the world through Dakota eyes. My first AR walk is called the Dakota Spirit Walk and it was so successful that I’ve been asked to create more AR installations for other organizations. 

“I want the next generations to feel seen and heard through the work I create so things are easier for them.”

Tips for Artists to Get Involved In Their Communities

Marlena is sitting in a chair on a stage looking at an angle, possibly at a projection screen. She’s holding a mic with a podium and laptop in front of her. Another projection screen is angled behind her sharing information about the Sacred Hoop Walk.
Marlena presents details about the Dakota Sacred Hoop walk.

  • Look for community needs or topics you want to support and ask how you can get involved to uplift your community
  • Create resources that are lacking for teachers to use in their classrooms, or that can be used at youth community events

There’s always work to be done and artists have gifts that can bring much joy to society. 

A Dakota Land park sign hangs from a fence. Rectangular illustrations are stacked on top of each other to create the sign. The top illustration is of flowers and butterflies. A man with glasses in a yellow shirt is in the next illustration looking up behind a blue sky and green grass. The word “breathe” is in blue letters behind person. The same word in different languages is in the grass. The middle illustration says “Welcome we are on Dakota Land” with horses, feathers, stripes and other Dakota deco designs. The following design is purple and yellow flowers on a black background. We see a woman on the right side smelling the flowers with her eyes closed. The bottom illustration is a blue cloud-character on a black patterned design across from a reddish sun character on an inversed, white patterned background. A green circle with reddish words saying “rain or shine for all kind” are in between them.
A Dakota Land park sign emphasizing nature and the elements.

My Favorite Part of Being A Native American Designer on Spoonflower.

I love seeing what people create using my designs. At the time I got into surface design, I didn’t see many designs created by Native people. Spoonflower was so helpful in filling that void. Now, I see many more Native artists using Spoonflower, and I’m proud that we have this resource to create for our communities and show our capabilities. It’s incredibly inspiring to see designers out there using my fabrics to create wonderful adornments that our ancestors would be proud of. 

Light blue purse with monarch butterflies and green leaves. Diamonds with pink, purple and brown stripes are within the design. A large star-shaped flower is in the center of the design. Bamboo handles stand from the top of the purse. A planks of wood are in the background.
Heruse to Handmade Handbags used Marlena’s art on this purse.
Featured design: Dakota Deco 3e: Milkweed & Monarch Butterflies by mylesdesigns.
A woman in a graphic print jumpsuit in front of an orange and pink van on grass, in front of a building.
Marlena loves that makers can use her designs in unique (and fashionable) ways. Alex Romero created this jumpsuit.
Featured design: Dakota Pop Art – Land Back by mylesdesigns.
Someones feet are crossed in front of a grassy area wearing brown leather moccasins with a teal floral design. Leather straps are tied to secure the shoe on the foot.
Shauna White Bear of White Bear Moccasins made these shoes using Marlena’s art.
Featured design: Dakota Prairies: Wild Horses 1a by mylesdesigns.

Finding Inspiration For Pattern Design

I love all kinds of pattern designs, so I look at different eras of designs and think about how Dakota art can be represented in that theme too. So in my Spoonflower portfolio, you’ll see combinations of Dakota floral designs with different eras such as 1970s or midcentury modern. I think Dakota artistic expression is limitless so I keep my mind open for inspiration. 

A yellow dress with monarch butterflies and green leaves is on a black mannequin. Ribbons in red, black, orange, green, yellow and purple are placed down the dress.
Bitterwater for Redhouse designed this dress using Marlena’s design.
Featured design: Dakota Deco 3b: Milkweed & Monarch Butterflies by mylesdesigns.
A grey mannequin hangs from a wooden ladder near a window. The mannequin is dressed in a white eyelet top, a white necklace and a purple dress with purple and pink ribbons. The skirt has pink flowers with green and purple leaves going in a diagonal direction.
Marlena’s designs are popular beyond the United States, Canada’s Deadly Aunt Trappings in British Columbia also uses them in their apparel.
Featured design: Dakota Prairies: Rose (lavender version by mylesdesigns.

Marlena’s Studio Must Haves

I buy every kind of pattern book I can find to stay inspired by what’s going on all around the world. The books don’t even have to be in English, I study the illustrations and photographs instead.  

I’m also inspired by the patterns Grandmother Earth puts into all of her creations. I live near a number of parks and it’s always inspiring to see the different seasonal colors. 

A woman with long hair wearing a long teal robe is walking towards a setting sun with round sunrays. Her right profile is visible as she looks to the right. Pointy-shaped flowers of different heights and styles surround here at a distance. A sandy plain is ahead of her.
“Grandmother Earth’s Shawl” design.

“It’s incredibly inspiring to see designers out there using my fabrics to create wonderful adornments that our ancestors would be proud of.”

2 Creative Tips For Spoonflower Artists

  • Experiment with mixing genres and your personal culture to create something new, yet familiar!
  • Celebrate the things that mean the most to you in creations, especially what is often overlooked. 

Marlina is drawing an illustration on a small screen in front of a keyboard that lights up. In front of her above that screen is a bigger screen showing her illustration. The screens show a close up of an animated face at an angle.
Marlena illustrating her “UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF HAŊWÍ” (evening light) artwork.

A mural of a woman and child tending to a garden is designed on a buidling with red rectangles above the art. The mural was created using Dakota art and design.

Marlena’s ‘Rooted: Caring for Posterity’ mural was commissioned by Target at the Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN location. The installation was created to illustrate a poem.

Shop Marlena’s Best-Selling Designs

Dakota Prairies: Wild Horses 1b by mylesdesigns

Dakota Pop Art – Land Back by mylesdesigns

Dakota Deco – Pattern 1 by mylesdesigns

Want to Meet More Indigenous Creatives on Spoonflower? 

As Marlena mentioned, there are several Native American artists on Spoonflower and beyond. Read their stories (and more of Marlena’s) and check out their designs—including a collection curated by the author.  
Check Out More Artists