This beader is mixing two sides of her cultural identity to create one signature style

As a kid, Mikailah Thompson remembers being awestruck by her grandmother's massive collection of beads, stored in cans and boxes that filled a small closet.

The oldest of three children, Thompson said her grandmother was a tough, opinionated woman and an avid bead worker.

"It was just amazing. I was able to have her at my fingertips as a child and, you know, learn from one of the greats," Thompson told Unreserved host Rosanna Deerchild.

Thompson's grandmother taught her to bead. The first project she helped her make was a large hair clip. Though Thompson never finished it, the hobby stuck.  

Thompson, an African American Indigenous artist from the Nimîipuu nation in Lapwai, Idaho, began selling her beadwork on the side about a decade ago. She quit her job in 2021 to open her company, Beadwork By Mikailah, and co-host a podcast where she shares personal experiences about her mixed Afro-Indigenous identity.

Thompson's design inspiration comes from the work of her own Nimîipuu ancestors. Beading has been an important way for Indigenous people to express their cultural identity and connect with their history.

"At first, [beading] was just a connection to my family, knowing my grandmother does this, seeing all of these big, amazing projects and thinking I want to do that too someday," said Thompson.

But these days, Thompson's beadwork isn't just a way of connecting to her Indigenous roots. By incorporating Nigerian designs and patterns, Thompson blends the artwork of both her African and Indigenous ancestors into something that reflects her own mixed identity.

Thompson said it's common for biracial people to feel like they don't fully belong in either culture. While her parents on both sides encouraged her to learn about Black and Indigenous heritage growing up, mixing the two in her work helped her to become confident in holding both identities at once.

"Growing up, I felt like I had to be this or I had to be that. If this is Native beadwork, I [have to] be all Native within this art form," Thompson said. "I realized there are no rules here."

After taking a DNA test and discovering she was of 40 per cent Nigerian descent, Thompson began studying Nigerian artwork to better understand the meaning behind the patterns and designs used.

On a handbag Thompson recently made, she beaded a zig-zag Nigerian pattern down the middle, complimented by a common geometric Indigenous design on each side. Thompson says she tries to incorporate patterns across both cultures that have similar design elements.

"It's being able to just pull different things and different parts of me that I'm learning along the way and putting it into my work," said Thompson.

Thompson always includes one bead of a specific colour and style from her grandmother's collection into each piece she works on. Indigenous artists often call this out-of-place bead a "spirit bead."