Norma Baker-Flying Horse never considered herself a designer, or even a brand. Her desire to preserve her culture through clothing morphed into a Grammy-winning business promoting Native representation in Arizona.
Baker-Flying Horse is a registered member of the Hidatsa, Dakota Sioux, and Assibione tribes, as well as an adopted member of the Crow tribe. Growing up on the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation reservation in North Dakota, she danced at powwows when she was younger.
Her career in fashion began six years ago while working as a full-time staffer for the MHA Nation tribal council. Cheyenne Brady, a close friend and the 2015 winner of the Miss Indian World pageant, reached out to her to design a dress for an event she was attending.
“They wanted something to represent them and their tribe,” Baker-Flying Horse said.
The 40-year-old designer deconstructed contemporary garments and reconstructed them using designs and materials found in traditional regalia. By merging the contemporary with the cultural, she said that her work preserves her heritage in spite of historical efforts to erase Indigenous culture.
“We may not be decolonized, but we’re certainly not giving in,” she said.
Baker-Flying Horse said that she didn’t see herself as a business, and that she was just excited to see people wearing the clothing she had created.
Everything changed when she won the title of Phoenix Fashion Week’s Emerging Designer of the Year in April of 2022.
Her journey began after Niya DeGroat recruited her into the organization’s Emerging Designer Boot Camp.
DeGroat, a member of the Diné tribe in Arizona, has been a part of the Phoenix Fashion Week team since 2012. He became passionate about encouraging Native designers to take part in the organization after Aconav became the first Native brand to win the Emerging Designer of the Year title in 2018.
“I decided I wanted to elevate the discussion around Indigenous fashion,” he said.
Led by director Brian Hill, she said that he and his team gave her the confidence to “unapologetically create,” and that it felt wonderful to be around open-minded people who were willing to learn as they taught her.
“They see color and uniqueness in people, but don’t put anyone into boxes,” she said.
Her efforts to educate through fashion paid off. Hill performed a land acknowledgement before the April showing of Phoenix Fashion Week, something that the organization had never included before.
Her collection opened with a traditional dance performed by Baker-Flying Horse’s nieces. The winning 10 item collection walked the runway, featuring pieces like a hand painted buckskin dress and a ballgown patterned with traditional motifs.
“It shows that Native designers are just as worthy, just as competitive as far as design,” DeGroat said.
Shortly after winning Emerging Designer of the Year, Baker-Flying Horse became the first Native co-recipient of the Cultural Recognition in Visual Arts Grammy award.
Her collection, photographed by co-recipient Joseph Pekara, was shown during the opening ceremonies of the televised Grammy awards.
“The fashion industry is just starting to become aware that we exist,” Baker-Flying Horse said.
DeGroat and Baker-Flying Horse said that although representation for Native people in fashion is growing, their voices are still negatively impacted by cultural appropriation.
Baker-Flying Horse said that it isn’t cultural appropriation, however, to purchase from Native designers, and encourages non-Native people to support Native designers.
“We should be sharing our cultures with so many different people,” she said.
She said that non-Native people should educate themselves on where the designs are coming from when buying from her, and she does not incorporate sacred items meant exclusively for her people.
DeGroat said that Indigenous designers feel like they’re living in two worlds when it comes to fashion. Striking a balance between cultural elements and contemporary designs is difficult when dealing with a large audience.
“She [Baker-Flying Horse] is the perfect example of how to blend both cultures effectively,” he said.
Baker-Flying Horse, whose designs have been found on the red carpet at the Oscars and the Grammys, wants Native designers to know that it’s OK for them to take up space in a positive way, and to use contemporary clothing to their advantage.
“There’s a history and a story behind everything we create,” she said.
In the past, her ancestors hid cultural clothing to prevent it from being destroyed. Nowadays, Baker-Flying Horse said that people want to see more culture in fashion.
“It’s a vehicle for us to show we are just as fashionable, just as beautiful, as any other group in the industry,” he said.
“There’s a history and a story behind everything we create,” said Norma Baker-Flying Horse. "The fashion industry is just starting to become aware that we exist."