Sayokla Kindness is an internationally recognized, award-winning multi-disciplinary bead and wampum artist from the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, Turtle Clan, whose work has been exhibited and celebrated for its extraordinary beauty, technical mastery, and cultural depth. Rooted in Haudenosaunee teachings, her practice bridges ancestral knowledge and contemporary Indigenous art in ways that are unmistakably her own.
In this conversation, Sayokla shares the winding path that brought her home. We talk about her journey as an artist, the responsibilities of carrying cultural knowledge, and the profound teachings embedded within her work. One powerful story (among so many) after recently harvesting quahog shells with a mentor, then attempting to make dozens of wampum beads, only fourteen were successful. Rather than seeing those failed attempts as setbacks, she speaks with deep gratitude for the fourteen that survived.
Today, she is a Haudenosaunee woman who can recite the Thanksgiving Address, while holding wampum beads that she strung herself. Sayokla's work demonstrates that artistic excellence and ancestral knowledge are entangled pursuits. Whether exhibiting internationally or sitting with the teachings of wampum, she shows us what it looks like to carry Haudenosaunee knowledge forward with generosity, integrity, and joy.
Host/Producer: Kahstoserakwathe
Production Manger: Tamara Louks
Editor: Eve Krogman
Audio Engineer: Mariana Hutten Czapski
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