Through visual language steeped in symbolism and resonance, Dakota Mace creates intimate spaces in which the past is not merely recalled but felt—transforming the act of seeing into a shared experience of collective remembrance. DAHODIYINII—SACRED PLACES, Mace’s first solo exhibition in New Mexico, is a poetic meditation on the intricate bonds between people, Land, and memory.

DAHODIYINII—SACRED PLACES references one of the most appalling episodes in American history: when the US Army expelled the Diné people from their ancestral homeland, Dinétah, as an act of ethnic cleansing. In what came to be known as the Long Walk, close to 10,000 people were forcibly marched up to 400 miles to the Bosque Redondo in New Mexico, where they were held against their will from 1864 to 1868. Mace maps and chronicles this displacement with care, thoughtfully establishing Land as an active witness, collaborator, document, and material. Mace underscores the profound significance of place, rooted in Ałk’idáá—a Diné concept of balance and generational continuity that literally translates to “experiences of events stacked up through time.”

The exhibition unfolds across five galleries in three interwoven threads—Stars, Memory, and Land—each offering a unique lens into Diné cosmology. Stars immerses us in a constellation of ancestors, reflecting an understanding of the universe as a vast and interconnected expanse. Memory unearths deep histories through a living archive. Land is the anchor, bridging the celestial and terrestrial planes.

DAHODIYINII—SACRED PLACES features recurring shades of black, cochineal, and indigo. Site-specific earthen installations, weavings, beadwork, hides, over 1,500 naturally toned cyanotypes, and archival photography are included. Immersive recordings of Diné elders and their children sharing stories position the body as a vessel to carry the weight of history. For many, memories are embedded within the earth, forming an enduring connection between people and place. Mace’s practice is tethered to cycles of creation, dissolution, and renewal, reflecting on the ephemerality of material and the endurance of oral traditions through breath, voice, song, and narrative.

THANK YOU

DAHODIYINII – SACRED PLACES was made possible by lead support from the Ellsworth Kelly Award, created to catalyze a solo exhibition for a contemporary visual artist. The Award is endowed by The Ellsworth Kelly Foundation and administered by the Foundation for Contemporary Arts.

Additional support for DAHODIYINII – SACRED PLACES is provided by the SITE SANTA FE Board of Directors; the SITE SANTA FE Exhibitions Fund; the Frederick H. Leonhardt Foundation; City of Santa Fe Arts and Culture Department and the 1% Lodgers Tax; New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs; and by the National Endowment of the Arts.