JayCee Beyale Responds...
CAW: Which Zane Greys works (books and/or movies) is your work engaging with?
JayCee: The works I have created are in direct dialogue with The Vanishing American. Through this body of work, I confront the harsh realities of life on the Navajo Nation, the very landscape in which the film is set. While the film attempts to acknowledge the mistreatment and betrayal of Indigenous peoples, it ultimately reinforces stereotypes and romanticized portrayals of Native Americans, particularly Diné people. These misrepresentations have endured well beyond the film's release and continue to shape public perception today.
In response, my work challenges these persistent narratives by presenting the contemporary realities, struggles, and resilience of the Diné people. Rather than relying on outdated or idealized representations, I seek to illuminate the ongoing social, cultural, and political issues facing our communities with clarity, honesty, and urgency.
How is your artistic style incorporated into your work?
My artistic practice combines digital and traditional media, creating work that speaks to contemporary audiences while honoring the artists and traditions that have shaped my approach to graphic, geometric forms. Through an ongoing exploration of mixed media, I continue to expand and strengthen my visual language, bringing together the diverse techniques and disciplines that inform my practice.
A significant part of my work is rooted in collaboration with communities through community art builds, where I help create picket signs, banners, and other forms of visual media that amplify local voices and bring attention to issues affecting their communities. In these works, I seek to incorporate the aesthetics and lived experiences that emerge from these collective efforts, transforming what might otherwise be viewed as political signage into powerful acts of visual communication. These pieces embody solidarity, resilience, and genuine concern for the well-being of people across all walks of life, as well as for the health and future of Mother Earth.
Are there specific issues or challenges within Native Communities that you are hoping to address and bring attention to?
My work centers on issues of water rights, Indigenous land stewardship, and the protection of sacred sites. Water security has become an increasingly urgent concern for my home community and many Indigenous Nations throughout the Desert Southwest. As prolonged drought continues to intensify, we are witnessing the ongoing denial and erosion of Indigenous water rights. Rights that have too often been taken without consent or overlooked entirely on Tribal lands.
At the same time, Indigenous lands are facing growing pressure from mining interests and large-scale developments, including the construction of data centers. The encroachment upon Indigenous territories remains a constant struggle. I believe that Indigenous Peoples must retain stewardship of their ancestral lands in order to sustain their cultures, traditions, and ways of life. Our philosophies, ceremonies, and identities are deeply rooted in the landscapes we have lived with, cared for, and held sacred for generations.
More recently, sacred sites that were once protected under National Monument designations have come under renewed threat from extractive industries seeking to exploit these places for economic gain. For Indigenous communities, these sites are far more than geographic locations but living places of cultural, spiritual, and historical significance. They embody ancestral knowledge, sustain cultural continuity, and represent a relationship of reciprocity between people and the natural world. Protecting these sacred places is not only essential for Indigenous communities, but also for preserving the balance between humanity and the Earth upon which we all depend.
Does Grey’s work evoke nostalgia or conflict for you, and does your work engage that tension?
The portrayal of Indigenous peoples through the "Noble Savage" stereotype has long reinforced the false idea that Native people are too weak, passive, or incapable of protecting themselves and their communities. This pattern is evident in the works of Zane Grey and has continued across numerous forms of media, where Indigenous characters are frequently depicted as needing an outsider—typically a non-Native hero—to rescue them, lead them into battle, or advocate on their behalf. These narratives erase Indigenous agency and diminish the strength, leadership, and resilience that Native communities have demonstrated throughout history.
In reality, Indigenous peoples have always possessed their own voices, systems of governance, and culturally grounded ways of addressing challenges. However, these perspectives are often dismissed, misunderstood, or portrayed as ineffective simply because they do not conform to dominant Western expectations. As a result, mainstream audiences have been conditioned to believe that meaningful change can only occur through outside intervention rather than through Indigenous leadership. This harmful narrative not only misinforms non-Native audiences but can also discourage Indigenous people from speaking out or participating in matters they consider sacred or deeply important. When the media repeatedly portrays Native voices as secondary to those of outsiders, it undermines Indigenous self-determination and reinforces the misconception that Native communities cannot advocate for themselves.