Work by Cherokee Nation artist on display at MCC
McHenry County College will display “Resilient Joy” by artist Hattie Lee Mendoza through Dec. 19 in the Epping Gallery, located outside the MCC Store in Building B.
A member of the Cherokee Nation, Mendoza’s process is a personal expression of the Native American Diaspora. She utilizes found or gifted fibers and objects while incorporating Cherokee basketry, pottery, or beadwork patterns.
“I myself am a collage of cultures and react by collaging materials from my ancestors, contemporary community, and personal life experiences,” Mendoza says in her artist statement. “My fiber weavings, made of ribbon, bias tape, and lace — often gifted to me by friends and family or sourced from my community — were born from a desire to connect with my Cherokee Nation Heritage.”
Graphic design, fine art, and craft are all woven together in Mendoza’s studio.
“My work represents the joy of our diverse world; cultivating collaboration and celebration of each other makes the world burst with beautiful cultural and generational texture,” she said.
Hattie Lee Mendoza is a multidisciplinary artist who grew up in Fowler, Kansas, and now lives in Peoria, Illinois. She holds an MFA from Bradley University and a BA in graphic design from Tabor College. Influenced by her great-grandmother and namesake’s Cherokee heritage and stories, Mendoza revives and continues that legacy within her family after generational loss of cultural connection.
Mendoza has been published in the #155 Midwest Issue of “New American Paintings,” in “Excellence in Fibers” volumes VII and VIII by Fiber Art Now, and in the Winter 2024 issue of “Art Focus.” She has exhibited in 13 states, with two solo exhibitions in 2024 at Oklahoma State University and Cameron University in Oklahoma. A large mixed-media collage was acquired and installed in the American Studies Department at the University of Notre Dame. Select awards include first place in contemporary weaving at the 2024 Eiteljorg Indian Market; first place in Abstract Art at the 55th Red Cloud Indian Art Show in Pine Ridge, South Dakota; as well as first place in Contemporary Basketry and third place in miniatures at the juried 53rd Trail of Tears Art Show in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. For more details about Mendoza, visit www.hattieleeart.com or her Instagram page @HattieLeeMendoza.
McHenry County College is at 8900 Route 14, Crystal Lake. For information about the art galleries at MCC, to request pricing, or to be added to the mailing list for upcoming exhibitions, contact Trevor Power, art gallery curator, at tpower@mchenry.edu.