Dorothy Grant was born into the Raven Clan in 1955 in Hydaburg, Alaska, a settlement in the state’s southeastern panhandle. She is a member of the Kaigani Haida of the Raven Clan from Brown Bear House of Howkan. Grant’s garments, ceremonial button blankets and spruce-root hats are treasured by Haida people as expressions of living culture. A sense of Haida identity is the creative force behind her labels Feastwear and Dorothy Grant.
Eagle Bolero with Full Circle Skirt Designer: Dorothy Grant Fabric: Cashmere/wool and pearl buttons Label: Feastwear Photographer: Farah Nosh Model: Daas Sterritt Located at the Haida Gwaii Museum
A graduate of the Helen Lefeaux School of Fashion Design in Vancouver, Canada, Grant’s work stems from “Yaagudaang,” a Haida word for “respect of one’s self.” It is a concept of daily living, intuitively taught to the Haida people as children. “Haida art is quite complex on so many levels. It is its own language,” she says. “The artists have kept it alive from one generation to another. What I offer [is a way] to see it through a fashion lens and my clothing line.” Grant has received numerous awards and honors for her clothing designs, including Best Professional Designer at Les Vendanges Montaigne, a highlight in Parisian life.
“Native fashion is…our way to communicate that we are still here and thriving.”
— Dorothy Grant
“Native fashion is about sharing our cultural aesthetics, and it’s our way to communicate that we are still here and thriving,” she says. “We as Native people are designers, weavers and stylemakers for thousands of years.”
Instagram: @dorothy.grant.studio
Facebook: /DorothyGrant.Studio
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