Sophia Lorraine Anderson grew up on the Shoalwater Bay Tribal Reservation on a rural corner of the Olympic peninsula.
My work is inspired by the experience of growing up on traditional coastal land surrounded by my tribal community, and the transition to life away from and back to those roots. After a 4-year stint in Seattle Washington, I currently reside on the Shoalwater Bay Tribal Reservation where I am happy to be woven back into my family and ancestral lands.
Photo by Brian Cruikshank 2023
Transmuting between painting, installation and beadwork:
While I love the process of painting, I also love the process of installation. When I exhibit my work I often find myself obsessively working to create an environment to view my paintings in that mimics the context that the work was created in; reclaiming the white cube to be a space that feels intimate and accessible.
During the time I lived in Seattle I began to learn to bead. My chicha (grandmother) Lorraine Anderson was a master beadworker, and she passed away when I was young due to Alzheimer’s, so I didn’t get to hear her talk about her memories while we were on this planet together. I started beading out of homesickness, because I wanted to understand her better, and to reconnect to my heritage while living off reservation.
photo by Sierra Grove