Market Reimagined

Amid unprecedented times, SWAIA takes on a new model for Santa Fe Indian Market that supports artists long-term.

This year when COVID-19 took over the country and the world, we knew a lot of events we love would inevitably be canceled or postponed. One of the biggest and grandest was that of the legendary SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market. And while we won’t see the massive in-person celebration of Native art that we know and love until 2021, SWAIA bounced back in record time putting together a Virtual Indian Market that will run through August 1 to 31, spearheaded by new SWAIA executive director Kim Peone. “The whole goal of this initially is to bring people to our website and promote Indian Market artists, and then direct them to the artists’ [individual] websites,” says Peone. In lieu of a booth, each participating artist will receive assistance from SWAIA, The Clark Hulings Fund, Artspan and other computer-based companies to bolster their online presence and expand their existing marketplace. For some artists, this means creating a website for the first time to promote their artwork. For 2020, collectors and lovers of Indian Market can go to www.swaia.org and explore every Market artist that piques their interest or ignites their passion for art. They can then go directly to the artist’s own website, where they’ll find an e-commerce platform to view and purchase artwork, bringing works in front of collectors on both a national and global scale. In some ways, Indian Market has never been more accessible. “My big vision for this is that we create a virtual platform that has traffic in order to help our artists in their individual marketing efforts,” says Peone. The total number of artists participating in the 2020 Virtual Indian Market at this time is around 500. Undoubtedly, one of the draws of Market is the chance to hear stories from artists— stories about their art, their processes and their lives, stories about what’s driving them forward and inspiring them to create right now. Another key component of the Virtual Indian Market that will bring this to life is the “Featured Artist” section, which will highlight certain artists and link to the artist’s personal website. “This is not only for August, but something we can use perpetually,” Peone adds. There will also be a variety of special online events including a fashion show (featuring designer Orlando Dugi) and a Gala Live Auction. “I think that this vision for [Virtual Indian Market] has been absolutely thrilling for me because it’s coming together as a very seamless thing,” says Peone. “When we’re able to have our beloved Indian Market back, we’ll be able to [continue using] our virtual model. So in the future, people who can’t come to Santa Fe will still be able to experience Indian Market.”