While primarily known for her video and photographic work, Shelley Niro continues to engage Mohawk aesthetics in her paintings. Oh My Aching Breaking Beading Heart references “whimsies,” or small, beaded novelties created by Indigenous women for the tourist market at Niagara Falls beginning in the early 20th century. Niro’s paintings invite viewers to consider their own interpretation while also presenting a contemporary Indigenous visual expression influenced by the natural world and cultural history.
Shelley Niro
56 x 44 x 3/4 in. (142.2 x 111.8 x 1.9 cm)
Art Bridges
2014
Oil on canvas
AB.2025.05
Artist; (Hales Gallery, NY); to Art Bridges, 2025