‘Rooted in Tradition’ | Underscore News

Mikailah Thompson, Nimíipuu and Black, is the owner of Beadwork by Mikailah and Indigenous Creatives, as well as co-host of Quantum Theory Podcast. (Photo courtesy of Indigenous Creatives)

Meet Mikailah Thompson, Nimíipuu and Black, entrepreneur and spring 2024 seasonal artist for Canada-based and Indigenous-rooted brand Manitobah.

By Jarrette Werk | Underscore News + Report for America

In 1863, the U.S. government took the Wallowa Valley from the Nimíipuu, two years after white settlers discovered gold there. Thousands of miners and settlers invaded after the government shrunk the reservation to one tenth of its former size. For Mikailah Thompson, returning to the jagged mountains and deep blue waters of the Wallowa Valley for the backdrop of her latest international brand deal, meant returning to her Nimíipuu roots.

This spring,  Manitobah, a Canada-based clothing brand, selected Mikailah Thompson as its spring 2024 seasonal artist. Thompson is an Afro-Indigenous artist and entrepreneur who shares her time between Lapwai, Idaho on the Nez Perce Reservation and Washington D.C. Through her unique use of geometric shapes, Thompson’s designs tell stories that blend her Nimíipuu and African heritage.

“Rooted in my culture, I intricately bead subtle elements of Nimíipuu and African designs into the pieces I create. Each bead, each stitch, serves as a profound homage to the legacy of my ancestors—honoring their stories, traditions, and resilience," Thompson said in the official statement announcing the collaboration.

Manitobah echoed Thompson’s excitement and is delighted to collaborate with artists like her to help bring collections like “Rooted” to life, according to Carolyn MacNaughton, CEO of Manitobah.

"Through collaborations like these, we provide a platform for authentic Indigenous art that encourages pride, shapes lives, and helps keep traditions alive. Thompson's contribution embodies this ethos, and we're excited to showcase her work and celebrate the rich heritage it represents,” MacNaughton said. “Together, we walk towards a future where Indigenous voices are celebrated and empowered.”

Chloe Thompson, Nimíipuu and Black, raises the Canyon Scarf as she dances in her jingle dress. Chloe studies broadcast production and film at Washington State University and is a videographer for Indigenous Creatives. She is also Mikailah Thompson's younger sister. (Photo by Pox Young, courtesy of Indigenous Creatives)

‍Moving Home

As a little girl, Thompson was raised on the east coast, living in places like Connecticut, Delaware and New York. At age ten, she moved nearly 2,500 miles back West to her mother’s reservation in Lapwai, Idaho, transitioning from a bustling industrial urban cityscape to the quiet, camas-filled hills and flowing rivers and streams of her homelands.
“I was able to get to be a part of a community for the first time,” Thompson said. “It was a really good feeling just to be around my family.”

Moving back to the reservation provided opportunities she didn’t have access to living across the country, according to Thompson. Now that she was home, she was excited to learn more about her culture, where she came from, what her people did, and who she was.

Beading was one of those traditions.

“My grandmother taught me how to bead once I moved home,” Thompson said. “She had a lot of beads, and I said, ‘You know, these look very interesting, and I'm curious,’ and she just jumped in…

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