Meet Konstance Patton Ke-nee-go-keshek

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Konstance Patton Ke-nee-go-keshek a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Konstance, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

As an artist, it took many years to find my purpose, to find my voice. I come from an artist household, and as a young girl I could draw, I could paint, and I learned how to sculpt. I learned many techniques from brilliant mentors and artists along the way. So many books I read and tried to emulate, Frida Kahlo, Andy Warhol, Basquiat, O’Keefe, and all the greats, but the problem was, I didn’t know what to paint. So I looked around and I painted and sculpted what I saw. I traveled the world searching for purpose in my work, learning about patterns in India, about fabrics in Mexico, and street art in Germany. I dug deep into my Native American roots my American roots, the colors and the texture and the beads and the fabrics and the feathers and the stories that came along with them.

When I was a kid, my uncle Si, author Simon Otto, took me on a car ride. We were up in Petoskey, Michigan, and I remember being in the car with him and we were riding through the woods on a two lane highway, and I can hear the sound nature and trees whipping by in the wind, and then he put on some music, but instead of it being music, it was actually the sounds of nature. And I remember thinking, “why are we listening to nature while we’re in nature?” It was only later that I realized that that was perhaps his meditation and now I find myself riding through nature, driving my red wagon on small roads, whipping through mountains, exploring and listening to the sounds of nature, to the sounds of earth.

All those old stories, the things that we’ve been passed down orally and visually make up who we are and in that, we can find our purposes as artists. My purpose as an artist is to create for future generations. I make art for future generations. I make art for the artists who will come after me, to provide context of the work, of our ancestors, and anchor into our present, our right now. I transmute the stories and the imagery that came before me, the images of American culture through the scope of women, adornment, beauty, reimagining futures, and resilience when it’s dark, creating light; and alchemy. I would invite any artist to take your time, finding your purpose, finding your voice in your art, and listening and paying attention to and connecting those lines that were passed to you, and then your purpose can’t help but reveal itself.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I recently opened up Ke-nee-go-keshek Fine Art Workshop, an Atlier on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It is my studio and I invite artists of all ages and skill sets to come to practice mural-making techniques and Sculpture. I have been making art in New York City for 20 years and over the past decade have been working in my hometown of Detroit, Michigan, and am a part of a community of Native American Artists in Michigan. i am looking forward to offering workshops to new communities in the near future.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

The qualities that have been most important in my career of making art for over 20 years is something so simple, first one is deadlines. Being able to meet a deadline and being able to put my projects on a deadline, and meeting it satisfactorily.

Dreaming Big is the second quality that is important to me. Thinking of an idea that seems so huge and super impossible and then just chipping away at it and seeing how far you can get, it’s always amazing what develops after and it’s never the same, but it’s always something better.

Digging into my family history has been impactful. Digging into my family history helped me develop my work over the years and give it meaning on purpose. The advice that I would give is to just really keep going, trust your process try new things out, collaborate, but more than anything, just do not give up. The moment you give up you gave up, and you never know what’s coming around the corner. It’s not easy always, keep finding your path, honing your skills, and when things reveal themselves that are gonna push you along further, take those opportunities and meet those deadlines.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle is a book that played an important role in my development. I read the book at 17 after seeing the movie dozens of times as a child, and when I found the book devoured it. It is about the journey of a unicorn, a solitary creature who hears that she is the last one left, and she goes on a journey to find out if she is indeed the last. Along the way, she is changed into a human when confronted with death. Her change of form is brutal, and while we see the beautiful woman who she is transformed into, she sees mortality after being immortal. Even with this new form and new emotions and disposition, she goes on to search for her brethren, and the stories and friends she meets along the way are all inspiring. I left home early to find my story as an artist, and I relate to the unicorn in the story as I learn more about Native American artists along the way, knowing that our culture has been hidden because of colonialism, and knowing that we are still out here, creating for the culture.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://konstancepatton.com
• Instagram: @keneegokeshekstudio
• Linkedin: konstance patton

Image Credits

Headshot Jason Campbell

cover of fresh plywood : Kurt Boone