Sharon Irla (born 1957) is a

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

artist, enrolled in the

Cherokee Nation The Cherokee Nation (Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ''Tsalagihi Ayeli'' or ᏣᎳᎩᏰᎵ ''Tsalagiyehli''), also known as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, is the largest of three Cherokee federally recognized tribes in the United States. It ...

. A self-taught artist, Irla began entering competitive art shows in 2003. Her collective body of works span the fields of painting, murals, graphics, photography, and custom picture frames with

Southeastern Woodlands Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, Southeastern cultures, or Southeast Indians are an ethnographic classification for Native Americans who have traditionally inhabited the area now part of the Southeastern United States and the nor ...

/ Mississippian motifs.Cherokee Phoenix
'Artist delights in painting' (retrieved November 28, 2009). The majority of her awarded works are oil-on-canvas portraits of Cherokee women in both contemporary and historical settings.

Themes

Irla’s most prevalent body of works are oil portraits of Native American women in both contemporary and historical settings. Her stated mission is to emphasize the complexity and importance of Native American women, thereby filing a perceived void in the artistic record. "Throughout history," Irla notes, “Native American women have been depicted in art far less often than Native American men, yet women played at least as important a role. For instance, the Cherokee used to have a Council of Women, and some Cherokee women, like Nanyehi (

Nancy Ward ''Nanyehi'' (Cherokee: ᎾᏅᏰᎯ: "One who goes about"), known in English as Nancy Ward (c. 1738 – 1822 or 1824), was a Beloved Woman and political leader of the Cherokee. She advocated for peaceful coexistence with European Americans and, ...

), rose to the honored status of "Beloved Woman", or "War Woman". These women rendered considerably weighty tribal decisions, but we don’t find paintings of any of them.” SharonIrla.com
Quotes from Artist's Website.

Technique

As a self-taught artist, Irla cites

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

as being most influential toward the development of her own method, which she describes as "a combining of dramatic illumination and Old Masters technique."

Community action and collaborations

Irla is a founding member of the Southeastern Indian Artists Association, formerly known as the Cherokee Artists Association which strives to promote Southeastern Woodlands art and protect the interests of Native American artists.Cherokee Artists Association
Cherokee Artists Association. She assisted GaDuGi artists (Bill Glass, Gary Allen, Demos Glass, Robby McMurtry, and Ken Foster) with “The Passage,” an outdoor art installment at Ross Landing in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

.Cherokee Phoenix
, (7/2005) Cherokee monumental art returns to origins (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). It was through Ross Landing that many Cherokee made passage to

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

(Oklahoma) during the

Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was an ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of approximately 60,000 people of the "Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government. As part of the Indian removal, members of the Cherokee, ...

Awards

Sharon Irla's first competitive art show entry was in 2003 with the oil-on-canvas portrait titled "She Was a Warrior" which received an Honorable Mention at the Cherokee Homecoming Art Show in

Park Hill, Oklahoma Park Hill is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in southwestern Cherokee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,909 at the 2010 census. It lies near Tahlequah, east of the junction of U.S. Route 62 and ...

.Cherokee Phoenix
, Deerskin coat wins grand award at Cherokee Homecoming Art Show (retrieved Feb. 22, 2010). Irla has since won awards in multiple Native American, competitive art shows. * Honorable Mention - 2003 Home Coming Art show,

Cherokee Heritage Center The Cherokee Heritage Center (Cherokee: Ꮳꮃꭹ Ꮷꮎꮣꮄꮕꮣ Ꭰᏸꮅ) is a non-profit historical society and museum campus that seeks to preserve the historical and cultural artifacts, language, and traditional crafts of the Cherokee. ...

, Park Hill, OK - She Was A Warrior * Honorable Mention - 2005 Home Coming Art show, Cherokee Heritage Center, Park Hill, OK - Serpentine Birds * Best Of Show - 2007 Cherokee Art Market, Catoosa, OK - Cherokee Beauty Tahlequah Daily Press
Realistic painting is Irla's passion (retrieved Feb. 22, 2010). * Best of Category (paintings) - 2007 Cherokee Art Market, Catoosa, OK - Cherokee Beauty * Best Of Category (paintings) - 2007 Trail Of Tears Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Cherokee Beauty * Chief's Choice - 2007 Cherokee Nation Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Cherokee BeautyTahlequah Daily Press
Cherokee Artists open first show (retrieved 2-22-2010). * 1st Place - 2007 Cherokee National Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Tellico Mysteries Tahlequah Daily Press
Realistic painting is Irla's passion (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * Honorable Mention - 2007 Trail of Tears Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Tellico Mysteries * Best Of Category (paintings) - 2008 Trail Of Tears Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Crows Stirring The Magic
, (2008) Cherokee Heritage Center announces winners (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * First Place - 2008 Cherokee National Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Crows Stirring The Magic Cherokee Nation
(9/2008) Cherokee Nation Announces Holiday Art Show Winners (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * Speaker Of The Council Award - 2008 Cherokee National Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Crows Stirring The Magic * Chief's Choice Award - 2008 Cherokee National Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Warrior's Call * Best Of Show - 2008

Five Civilized Tribes Museum The Five Civilized Tribes Museum in Muskogee, Oklahoma, showcases the art, history, and culture of the so-called "Five Civilized Tribes": the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Creek), and Seminole tribes. Housed in the historic Union Indi ...

Muskogee, OK Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County, Oklahoma, Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as ...

- Mother's Prayer Muskogee Phoenix
(6/2008) Portrait wins Best of Show (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * Peoples' Choice - 2008 Five Civilized Tribes Museum, Muskogee, OK - Mother's Prayer * Honorable Mention - 2008 Trail of Tears Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Mother's Prayer * Best of Show - 2009 Southeastern Art Show (

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw language, Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized tribes, federally recognized Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in th ...

), Ada, OK - Beloved Woman of The Cherokee Chickasaw Nation
, (10/2009) Chickasaw Nation Presents Arts, Culture Awards (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * 1st Place - 2009 Trail of Tears Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Mississippian Ink Green Country OK
, (2009) CHC - Winners of 38th Annual Trail of Tears (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010).
, Artist - 2009 Trail of Tears Art Show (retrieved Feb. 23, 2010). * Best of Show - 2009 Cherokee Holiday Art Show, Park Hill, OK - Beloved Woman of the Cherokee * 1st Place - 2009 Southeastern Art Show (Chickasaw Nation), Ada, OK - Crows Stirring The Magic

References

External links

SharonIrla.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Irla, Sharon Living people 1957 births Cherokee artists Cherokee Nation artists Native American painters Native American photographers American women painters Native American women artists Photographers from Oklahoma 21st-century American women photographers 21st-century American photographers 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans 20th-century Native American women 21st-century Native American women