Farewell to the Smokies (Trail of Tears)

Drawing inspiration from the natural world, Kay WalkingStick depicits monumental landscapes and Native places with the intention to glorify our land and honor those who first lived upon it. Her work expresses her own Native heritage as well as the non-native identity and mutual recognition of humanity we share as human beings.

WalkingStick painted this abstract landscape after a visit to the Smoky Mountains along the Tennessee-North Carolina border. The setting recalls the Trail of Tears. This eviction of the Cherokees from North Carolina in the 1830s is evoked by the haunting line of figures moving from a sunlit mountain to a darker unknown. The event left lasting scars on the Cherokee people.