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Alvitre, Weshoyot

ENTRY TYPE: new

WORK TITLE: Brave
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://www.weshoyot.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY:
LAST VOLUME:

 

RESEARCHER NOTES:

PERSONAL

Married; children: two.

EDUCATION:

University of Channel Islands, B.A.

ADDRESS

  • Home - CA.

CAREER

Comic book artist, illustrator, and video game art director.

AWARDS:

Blue Ribbon Nonfiction Book Award, Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, 2021, and Best Books for Kids List selection, New York Public Library, 2022, both for Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories.

WRITINGS

  • SELF-ILLUSTRATED
  • Brave , Kokila (New York, NY), 2025
  • ILLUSTRATOR
  • (Illustrator, written by Traci Sorell) At the Mountain's Base, Kokila (New York, NY), 2019
  • (Illustrator, written and selected by Dan SaSuWeh Jones) Living Ghosts & Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories, illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre, Scholastic Press (New York, NY), 2021

Work has been presented in numerous art exhibitions.

SIDELIGHTS

BIOCRIT

ONLINE

  • Adreon Patterson, https://adreonpatterson.net/ (November 7, 2024), author interview.

  • Cynsations, https://cynthialeitichsmith.com/ (October, 2019), Kim Rogers, author interview.

  • Isn’t It Marvelous?, https://isntitmarvelous.home.blog/ (May 7, 2019), author interview.

  • Smash Pages, https://smashpages.net/ (August 9, 2018), author interview.

  • Weshoyot Alvitre website, https://www.weshoyot.com/ (November 12, 2025).

  • Brave - 2025 Kokila, New York, NY
  • Living Ghosts & Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories ( written and selected y Dan SaSuWeh Jones, Ponca Nation ; illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre, Tongva) - 2021 Scholastic Press, New York, NY
  • At the Mountain's Base (by Traci Sorell ; illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre) - 2019 Kokila, New York, NY
  • Weshoyot Alvitre website - https://www.weshoyot.com/

    Bio
    ​Weshoyot Alvitre is a Tongva and Scottish comic book artist, writer and illustrator. She was born in the Santa Monica Mountains on the property of Satwiwa, a cultural center started by her father Art Alvitre. She grew up close to the land and raised with traditional knowledge that inspires the work she does today. Weshoyot has been working in the comics medium for over 15 years. Her work focuses on art and writing that visualizes historical material through an Indigenous lens. She has also contributed art response to contemporary Indigenous issues using pop-culture, sci-fi and archival research materials to spark conversations and re-frame colonial narratives.Her work has been featured in the anthologies of Moonshot Volumes 2 and 3, Deerwoman: An anthology, Imminent Cuisine the Zine, and Marvel Voices: Indigenous Voices. Alvitre has also received numerous awards for her childrens book illustrations in 'At The Mountains Base' (Kokila 2019) and 'Living Ghosts & Mischeivous Monsters' (Scholastic 2021). Alvitre’s current projects 'Toypurina: Our Lady of Sorrows' and 'Lone' focus on the re-telling of stories from her own tribal community, using historical fact, primary accounts and tribal knowledge to provide fuller representation of those from her Tongva history.Alvitre has made a conscious choice to work primarily within Native-owned publications and educational avenues, to further support a self-funded narrative on past, present and future native issues. Alvitre has made a conscious choice to work primarily within Native-owned publications and educational avenues, to further support a self funded narrative on past, present and future native issues. It is through this voice, and through her artwork, she feels she is able to communicate her unique viewpoint and continue a strong dialogue on issues that are important to her as a Native woman.

    LECTURES:

    *Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Fe, NM November 2017

    *Art Center College of Art & Design, Pasadena: Lecture, July 2019

    *Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, Washington DC: Giving Thanks Teacher Workshop November 2019

    *University of Riverside, NASP Lecture Series with Weshoyot Alvitre 2020

    *UCLA 30th Annual Thinking Gender Graduate Student Research Conference: “Sexual Violence as

    Structural Violence: Feminist Visions of Transformative Justice” Keynote opener March 2020

    *Robert S. Peabody Institute of Archaeology Lecture May 2020

    *Society of Illustrators, The business of Illustration Lecture June 2020

    *CUNY Ghostriver Lecture, October 2020

    *Cambridge University Beyond Expectations: Pasts, Presents, and Futures in Native Art October 2020

    *PBS Comics Culture, October 2020

    *CSUN “What’s art got to do with survivance?” November 2020

    *Society of Black Archaeologists, Indigenous Archaeology Collective, Wenner-Gren

    Foundation for Anthropological Research, and Cornell Institute of Archaeology and Material

    Studies, “ Black and Indigenous Storytellers as Counter-History” November 2020

    *CSULB American Indian studies Lecture, November 2020

    *Fibershed lecture March 2021

    *Manitoba Graphic Novel panel March 2021

    *Pew Lecture Series Lee Francis, Will Fenton April 2021

    *When Rivers Were Trails lecture April 2021

    *Autry Historical Imaginations with John Mack Faragher June 2021

    *Untouchable Artifacts Exhibit 5 Oaks Museum July 2021

    * GHOSTRIVER Gettysburg lecture October 2021

    *Tyler School of Art & Design lecture October 2021

    * Berkeley Carrol School lecture NYC October 2021

    * CSULB art lecture, November 2021

    *University San Diego Lecture, November 2021

    *“Indigenous Futures through Multimedia” UCONN Lecture, April 2022

    * Marshall McKay Seminar for Empowering Native Knowledge Autry, April 2022

    EXHIBITIONS:

    *2016 Native Realities: Superheroes of Past, Present, & Future,

    form & concept gallery, Sante Fe, NM

    *2017 Leonardo Di Caprio Foundation annual show & Auction, San Tropez, France

    *2018 Manifesto: A Moderate Proposal, Pitzer College Art Galleries Claremont, CA

    *2018 ALL MY RELATIONS ARTS: Bring Her Home, MINNEAPOLIS, MN

    *2019-2020 Ghostriver: The Fall and Rise of the Conestoga Exhibit, The Library Company,

    Philadelphia, PA

    *2021 Tongvaland Project Los Angeles, CA

    *2021 Native New York Smithsonian NMAI, New York, NY

    *2021 Five Oaks Museum Untouchable Artifacts

    *2022 Native Truths: Our Voices, Our Stories FIELD MUSEM, Chicago, IL

    *2022 Indigenous Women’s Atelier, Self Help Graphics, Los Angeles, CA

    *2022 Crossing Waters, Catalina Island Museum, Catalina Island, CA

    AWARDS:

    2015 Eisner best anthology “Little Nemo Dream Another Dream”

    2018 Prism Award “The Hummingbird Boys” Moonshot Volume 2

    2018 American Indian Library Association Award for Best Middle School Book: “Tales of the Mighty

    Code Talkers” Anthology

    2019 INDIECADE Adaptation Award “When Rivers Were Trails.”

    2020 American Indian Youth Literature Award - Picture Book Honor “At The Mountains Base”

    KOKILA

    2020 American Library Association Notable Children's Book “At The Mountains Base” KOKILA

    2020 Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People “At The Mountains Base” KOKILA

    2020 Rise: A Feminist Book Project - Top Ten List “At The Mountains Base” KOKILA

    2020 Notable Books for a Global Society Award List “At The Mountains Base” KOKILA

    2020 Wisconsin State Reading Association Recommendation List “At The Mountains Base”

    KOKILA

    2020 Bank Street's Best Children's Books of the Year “At The Mountains

    Base” - Poetry

    2021 BCCB Blue Ribbon Nonfiction Book Award "Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories"

    2022 Oklahoma Book Award Winner: Young Adult "Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories"

    2022 Kirkus Reviews Best Middle-Grade Anthologies of 2021 "Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories"

    2022 New York Public Library's Best Books for Kids List selection "Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories"

  • From Publisher -

    Weshoyot Alvitre is a Tongva and Scottish comicbook artist and illustrator. She is the illustrator of the picture book At the Mountain’s Base (written by Traci Sorell), which received the 2020 American Indian Youth Literature Award, and of Living Ghosts & Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories (written by Dan SaSuWeh Jones), which was named a 2021 Kirkus Reviews Best Middle-Grade Anthology. She resides in Southern California with her husband and two children. Visit her online at weshoyot.com.

  • Smash Pages - https://smashpages.net/2018/08/09/smash-pages-qa-weshoyot-alvitre-on-sixkiller-and-more/

    Smash Pages Q&A: Weshoyot Alvitre on ‘Sixkiller’ and more
    The writer, artist and colorist talks about her latest project for Native Realities Press, her contributions to ‘Sovereign Traces’ and ‘Deer Woman,’ and much more.

    Weshoyot Alvitre has been working in comics for years now as a writer, artist and colorist. She’s drawn covers for Satellite Falling, 10th Muse, and Tribal Force, drawn stories for Once Upon a Time Machine and Tales of the Mighty Code Talkers, and contributed to Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream. She’s colored Tribal Force and the upcoming Scout: Marauder, co-edited and contributed to last year’s acclaimed Deer Woman: An Anthology and has drawn the cover for the upcoming ninth volume of the acclaimed Dirty Diamonds anthology.

    Michigan State University Press has just published Sovereign Traces Volume 1: Not (Just) (An)Other, which includes a poem by Joy Harjo that Alvitre adapted and illustrated. Native Realities Press has also just released Sixkiller #1 by Lee Francis and Alvitre. A new series that Francis described as “Alice in Wonderland meets Kill Bill in Cherokee country,” the book is a stunning writing debut by Francis. The two projects also represent Alvitre’s best work to date, beautifully rendered with dynamic page designs, and make the case that Alvitre is no longer a promising young artist – she’s arrived. Her influences can be seen in her pages, but the result isn’t derivative of anyone and her work is simply stunning. She was kind enough to answer a few questions.

    I always like to start by asking people, what brought you to comics?

    I think the ultimate thing that brought me to comics is story. When I was a kid, I loved animation. I loved The Little Mermaid. I was obsessed with that film as it was unlike anything I had seen before. I asked how it was made. The story, the songs, the colors – the animation was just wonderment to me at a young age. Then my mom bought me a small graphic novel adaption of it. They had broken it down, probably using key frames from the animated piece. And in that moment, the breakdown of singular images to tell the same story hit me like a ton of bricks. After that, storytelling through sequential art became my passion. It took me many years to understand how animation worked, how comics worked, etc. but it really spurred my interests and directed them through the first 15-20 years of my life.

    So what is Sixkiller? What is the book to you?

    Sixkiller is a bit of a revenge book. It takes place in Indian country, and revolves around the main character Alice, coming to terms with her sister’s murder. It ties in mental health issues, and crosses lines of what’s real and whats on the other side of reality. The book to me is a jumping ground to try some new things with my art style, and also something new in interpreting this setting.

    When Lee first mentioned this, what made you interested in drawing the book?

    When he pitched the idea to me, he said it was like Alice in Wonderland meets Kill Bill. I have always been a huge fan of both, and quite honestly, I thought it was rather bold of Lee to describe it that way, as I had sort of pegged him as a safe, superhero style writer. He surprised me with this, I won’t lie. That unexpected boldness combined with the writing skills I knew he had got me very excited about the project. Years ago, while I was in college, I did a few pages of a darker Alice in Wonderland-style story. I still have the pages and have always been a bit fond of them. So having an excuse to dive back into a similar realm was very enticing to me, especially with the overlapping Native elements, like the living fetishes. I have always been a huge fan of the original illustrations of the book done by John Tenniel. They’re detailed and dark, despite them being for a children’s book. I told Lee outright I wanted to try to mimic a bit of that dense inkwork for this book. And from years of studying Victorian Illustration, I felt like if given the time, I might be able to pull it off.

    How do you and Lee work together? What’s your working relationship like?

    I think we are both excitable, a bit neurotic, but with common goals in mind. We were both super excited when we initially got this project off the ground, and of course we often are working on multiple projects at once. So this particular book did get pushed back during production. However, I feel like the art and final visuals of the book are some of the best work I personally have put out, and something that I am really proud of to have in the Native Realities library. I love working with Lee as he gives me a lot of freedom to take the book in the direction of my choosing. I appreciate that he trusts me to do that with his writing. And I also feel that he gives some very good editorial feedback during the process and afterwards, so we have really discussed the entire issue and book thoroughly and its something very thought out in the end. I have a lot of respect for his viewpoints and his writing. So I would say its a pretty damn good working relationship. The fact he is flexible with my art style time frame helps matters too. I couldn’t realistically do this style of art on a monthly book, and I appreciate him respecting that, so we have a beautiful product in our hands at the end.

    How long and how big is this series?

    That I am not entirely sure. I told him I am in it until the end. It does have an end, but I will leave that up to Lee to answer more thoroughly.

    Just to turn to another project of yours, for people who don’t know, what is the story of deer woman?

    The story of Deer Woman, from what I understand, is a solitary figure of oral history and storytelling. The concept of a deer woman appears in many traditional stories. In many, she is a lone creature, luring men, predominately, away from the true paths in life they should be following. She is a reminder of how straying from original teachings (in regards to family, in regards to treating other people, life choices) can be detrimental to your health, your well-being and ultimately, your life. She overlaps many teachings, and I think in that, she is an incredible muse and jumping ground for Indigenous storytelling.

    How did you get involved with Deer Woman: An Anthology?

    I was working with Lee and had met Elizabeth LaPensée through him. He put a call out looking for a co-editor for an unnamed book, and because the assembly, creation of a book from an editorial standpoint really interested me, I threw my hat in the ring. I was in journalism in high school and the behind the scenes work, in regards to organization/page layout/etc. is something I really love. Lee then let me know what the project was, and the fact Elizabeth was heading it, and it just felt like a dream project.

    What was that process like? How was the work divided between you?

    I think Elizabeth handled the majority of the workload. I feel like I was there as a shadow, an assistant, to see how she did things, to help give input into the layout, and also into the pieces made for the anthology. We had a few submissions that felt better suited for another anthology, so there was some editing in regards to choosing art and story that really supported the concept of Deer Woman, but also something that formed reflecting the strength and tenacity of Indigenous women as storytellers and as artists. The organization felt very organic, stories and art would come in, and we would discuss, and absorb each piece. The power in that was that with each finished submission, you could see this amazing energy growing, knowing these stories would all be within a book cover, and that it would be in the hands of more people than just ourselves. It was powerful being a witness to watching it take shape and materialize.

    Could you talk a little about your contribution to the book?

    My contribution to the book happened a bit by accident. It was something I created, that needed to be said and put down on paper – but I wasn’t entirely sure through what means it would ultimately be published. Elizabeth felt that it would serve best within this anthology and so I really trusted her. My piece is on Missing and Murdered Indigenous women. It was a piece I did before learning about recent cases, before Wind River, but seemed even more striking after cases like those. I put myself in a dark place. I thought about the cycle of being a woman, through life and death and birth. I thought about unifying blood within, from being native to being human, to how it is a sacred color. There are a lot more things I could write about my piece, my thoughts on it are incredibly dense, and I tried to minimize the words and images, but do so in a way that would hopefully make a strong impact. I sat with it a long time before doing art for it. And I sat with the words for a long time before finally committing the final version.

    You’re also part of a group show that’s opening in Minneapolis, Bring Her Home: Stolen Daughters of Turtle Island.

    Yes, I submitted, with approval, the 3 pages of art I did for the Deer Woman anthology to this show. It was hand selected by Angela Two-Stars, whose grandmother was a victim of MMIW and who is also the curator of the show. I was fortunate enough to speak with her on the phone prior to the show opening. Her vision for the work supporting the show is that it presents the issue at hand, but also shows hope, and does not exploit the pain or the issue. I have a lot of respect for what she has done with this show, and the incredible talent she has hanging on the walls. I am honored to have my art within it.

    You have a story in Sovereign Traces Volume 1 that just came out. How did you end up adapting and illustrating Joy Harjo’s Deer Dancer?

    I was asked by Elizabeth LaPensée if I would like to contribute and of course I said yes. She gave me several pieces to read through and to choose from to illustrate. Joy Harjo’s piece spoke to me. I couldn’t get the visuals out of my head and so I told her I wanted that piece. I’m rather embarrassed to admit I was not familiar with her writing. I didn’t take but one Native studies class in college. They just didn’t offer them. But after discovering her voice through this poem, I went on a ravenous Amazon book buying spree and ordered several of her books. The way she writes is something else entirely. Its absolutely inspiring, hits so many feelings I have experienced but perhaps not been able to put words to. She is one amazing woman and I would love to do more art in response to her words in the future. I was honored to have been able to work on this particular poem for Sovereign Traces.

    I know that you’re working on a few different projects. What are you working on now and what are you thinking about going forward?

    As always, I have my hat in a few different areas. I am currently working on a children’s book through Penguin, written by Traci Sorell, who is of Cherokee heritage. I am also working on a video game with Elizabeth LaPensée. I am continuing on several projects for Lee Francis and for Native Realities as well. Moving forward, in comics, I really want to lend my art to telling stories which I feel are important in current representation as native peoples. I also want to provide my own personal perspective on historically based material. I didn’t have any Native artists, writers or examples to look up to growing up. Most books about Natives, were not written or illustrated by Native people. So I am doing my small part to try to change that so my children have a different experience with representation when they grow. I find that doing the work I do is very healing for me in many ways. Eventually I would like to do a graphic novel based on my tribe, the Tongva of Los Angeles basis, and to bring light to some of their stories, and people, specifically Toypurina, which is not well known to current people living here in the state of California.

  • Adreon Patterson - https://adreonpatterson.net/2024/11/07/native-american-heritage-month-spotlight-weshoyot-alvitre/

    Native American Heritage Month Spotlight: Weshoyot Alvitre
    Weshoyot Alvitre saw imagery as a way to spread her culture. Alvitre spent most of her life in Tongva Country in Santa Monica, California, where her father founded Satwiwa. Growing up in the 1980s and ’90s allowed her to embrace her Tongva and Scottish background. She began exploring the arts at a young age through her fascination with children’s books through her librarian mother. That love for illustration transferred to comics and Japanese manga like Ghost in a Shell and Naussica. Alvitre noticed a lack of Native American education and poured that into her high school comics. The comic book artist followed her love of the medium to study fine arts at Ventura College before transferring to the University of Channel Islands.

    Alvitre’s time at college paid off as the college student began booking work with major publications. Her comics career started inking and penciling for notable titles like Tenth Muse and Gerard Way’s Umbrella Academy. These early works gained the attention of Marvel and Darkhorse Comics for titles like Once Upon a Time Machine and Voices. Her work on Umbrella Academy and Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream won her numerous Eisner and PRISM Awards.

    The illustration and storytelling led Alvitre to explore beyond comics as she wrote and designed multiple educational materials and graphic novels, including Graphic Classics: Native American Classics. These moves allowed her to delve into children’s books and young adult fiction. She began her publishing career by illustrating 2019’s At the Mountain Base and 2021’s Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters.

    Alvitre’s illustration work goes beyond the page. She showcased her art at various exhibitions around the United States. Her years of illustration paid off as she was the art director for the independent Indigenous video game When Rivers Were Trails. She will publish her first book, Brave, as an author and illustrator in 2025.

    Weshoyot Alvitre uses imagery to display and educate the world about her Indigenous culture. Her contributions to Native American awareness inspired upcoming illustrators and comic book artists. Providing incredible illustrations has spread her culture and people to those outside her world. I will say, “Ms. Alvitre, we appreciate you for allowing your art to paint beautiful pictures of your culture and ancestry.”

    There is a whole lineage of ancestors behind it who have passed the knowledge on generation to generation, and it has outlived books or tutorials on the subject matter. It becomes ingrained in the makeup of who we are as Native people if we simply take the time to tap into it, and it heals a lot of emotional weight we carry by learning the arts and incorporating them into our daily lives.

    Weshoyot Alvitre

  • Cynsations - https://cynthialeitichsmith.com/2019/10/native-vision-weshoyot-alvitire-on-illustrating-at-the-mountains-base/

    Native Vision: Weshoyot Alvitre on Illustrating At The Mountain’s Base
    Home » Native Vision: Weshoyot Alvitre on Illustrating At The Mountain’s Base

    By Kim Rogers

    Today, I’m delighted to welcome Weshoyot Alvitre to Cynsations.

    At the Mountain’s Base (Kokila, 2019) is illustrated by Weshoyot and written by Cherokee author Traci Sorell.

    Weshoyot is Tongva (Los Angeles Basin) and is well established within the Indigenous art community.

    A comic book artist and illustrator, she has contributed to numerous Eisner award-winning books, including the Umbrella Academy (Darkhorse Comics) and Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream (Locust Moon Press).

    She has earned accolades for her work that visualize historical material, including Graphic Classics: Native American Classics (Eureka Productions) The Cattle Thief and most recently, the first volume of highly acclaimed Tales of the Mighty Code Talkers (Native Realities Press).

    What about this manuscript called to you as an illustrator?

    When I first received the manuscript, I was surprised at the brevity and power Traci Sorell managed to obtain in it. It’s written in a circular fashion which I really fell in love with.

    I immediately started thinking of how and what type of weaving I could incorporate into it as fiber arts and textiles are a big part of my life. From there, I started sketching and looking into potential forms of Native weaving I could incorporate into the illustrations.

    What were the challenges (artistic, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing the images to life?

    I think the biggest challenge for me on this was taking an established style I have within comic book illustration and finding a way to translate that to a children’s book.

    My art tends to be linear heavy with a lot of emphasis on line weight and black and white space. Color intimidates me. So I decided to try to choose a palette that not only referenced the feel of the weavings I was trying to pay tribute to, but to instill a kind of nostalgia through colors harkening back to the era of World War II.

    I settled on a variation of primary colors, and these became the foundation by allowing color to frame each illustration through the colored yarn strands, which serve as panel borders in a way, throughout the book.

    Once I felt comfortable with this combination of comic book style art and more traditional illustration, I had more security in playing with layouts breaking panel borders and allowing the art to spread over multiple pages.

    I did a lot of research into various forms of weaving with an emphasis on finger-weaving for this book. The traditional weaving patterns often referred to as “lightning bolts” inspired me.

    Lightning bolts were also used as military motifs on the sides of airplanes, flight jackets, military patches, etc. during World War II.

    So the visual thematic elements started to build this nice balance between vintage military aesthetics and Native arts, reflecting also military family and traditional Native family structures.

    Illustration by Weshoyot Alvitre, used with permission.
    What is your relationship to the children’s-YA writing and illustration community? To the larger children’s-YA literature community?

    I am a bit of new blood within the children’s-YA and picture book illustration community. My background is in comics, but many writers I have worked with have feet in both contemporary writing as well as pieces of work more geared to children and young adults.

    This seems to be especially prevalent with Native American writers. So often we are trying to educate children as well as adults by offering unique perspectives to the publishing world at large.

    Illustration by Weshoyot Alvitre, used with permission.
    It is a beautiful thing to see so much more space being given by major publishers, like Kokila, to under-represented minority writers within the Native community. I am grateful to have had such a warm reception with my first book and look forward to many more in the future.

    Illustration by Weshoyot Alvitre, used with permission.
    As a member of a community under-represented in youth literature, what did your diverse perspective bring to your story?

    I think the strength of my perspective in tackling the art for At the Mountain’s Base is being able to take something as quiet as spinning yarn, weaving, etc. and show that our traditional arts were often done while we socialized in groups, either at gatherings or within families.

    Illustration by Weshoyot Alvitre, used with permission.
    My own tribe, the Tongva, were basket weavers. And there are so many steps to learn about the process, many which include songs, stories, and protocol methods to gathering and preparing supplies. Weaving has similar attributes, and while I don’t know the songs or stories associated with each step of finger weaving, for example, I can appreciate and try to show that it’s more than something people just sit down and do.

    There is a whole lineage of ancestors behind it who have passed the knowledge on generation to generation, and it has outlived books or tutorials on the subject matter. It becomes ingrained in the makeup of who we are as Native people if we simply take the time to tap into it, and it heals a lot of emotional weight we carry by learning the arts and incorporating them into our daily lives.

    Illustration by Weshoyot Alvitre, used with permission.
    Cynsational Notes

    Weshoyot Alvitre is an illustrator and comic book artist. She has a BA in fine art and studied illustration and animation. She is Tongva and Scottish.

    She has contributed to many award-winning books including the Eisner award-winning Umbrella Academy (Darkhorse Comics) and Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream (Locust Moon press).

    Her most recent projects include art for the graphic novel Ghost River (Native Realities Press/Library Company of Philadelphia), Moonshot volume 3 (AH Comics Inc.), and art direction on the educational video game, When Rivers Were Trails.

    Kim Rogers covers children’s-YA writing, illustration, publishing and other book news from Indigenous authors and illustrators for Cynsations.

    Kim writes books, short stories, and poems across all children’s literature age groups. Her work has been published in Highlights for Children, Guideposts Sweet 16, the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and many other publications.

    Kim is an enrolled member of Wichita and Affiliated Tribes and the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. Much of her current writing highlights her Wichita heritage. She lives in Oklahoma with her husband, two boys, and one ornery, but very cute Chiweenie dog named Lucky.

    She is represented by Tricia Lawrence at Erin Murphy Literary Agency.

  • Isn't It Marvelous? - https://isntitmarvelous.home.blog/2019/05/07/artist-spotlight-weshoyot-alvitre/

    Artist Spotlight: Weshoyot Alvitre
    Rachel Uncategorized May 7, 2019 2 Minutes
    I have been following Weshoyot Alvitre on Instagram since I first read Sixkiller #1 a few months ago. She has a website here, where you can see some of her artwork and comics. Alvitre has worked on popular comics, such as Dark Horse’s Umbrella Academy, as well as creating her own series. Her comics bring a Native voice to a predominantly white field (comics), and is a breath of fresh air. There have been recent hints of a new comic and it features a lot of old western themes. She posts videos of her drawing panels for her comics (which is absolutely incredible to watch). Alvitre also posts sneak peaks of her upcoming comics and pictures she drew just for fun. I am going to link her instagram at the bottom of this article for anyone that wants to see her artwork. On April 13, 2019, she posted a fully-inked panel with the caption:

    “#SequentialArt diving deep into #American #history to give a voice to those #Indigenous #victims who have been silenced for hundreds of years. It is time for their story to be told, to offer new perspectives on actual events, to offer new perspectives and build bridges in compassionate understanding so the #Conestoga people are never forgotten; So stories can be told from #Native perspectives. This is rewriting history as we know it. This is redrawing history as we see it. #LCPRedrawingHistory #fall2019 #NativeRealities”.

    With this, I believe she is trying to move her people forward without forgetting the past. She wants to share the story of the Conestoga people in a way that can be embraced by the newer generations. There should be more open mindedness and show that there are two sides to every story. She, like many other indigenous creators, want to tell their story—their truth—without it being “less than” white stories and white history. Unfortunately, their truth has been told through a white lense over and over until recently. Now, I think people are more willing to listen (and if they aren’t, they should be). The stories are there. The stories are being told. It is our responsibility to listen and to learn.

    I think there is a lot to learn her. I personally hope she gets more recognition from the comic book community because she is just phenomenal (and I’m fangirling a little). She is telling incredible stories with impeccable artwork and deserves more recognition. I look forward to seeing what she publishes and hope to get my hands on the next issue of Sixkiller.

    I urge anyone reading this to visit her instagram and her website. Alvitre is an incredible artist, sharing a lot of important messages. Her instagram is here.

    Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this.