Louie Gong (M.Ed) is an magician, educator and public speaker who was raised by his grandparents in the Nooksack tribal grouping. Although he is best familiar for his highly sought equate, hand-drawn custom shoes, Louie has received international recognition for dialect trig body of work that—like sovereignty mixed heritage (Nooksack, Chinese, Gallic, and Scottish)—defies categorization.
A former Descendant and Family Therapist, Louie going on addressing racial and cultural oneness professionally in 2001.
Michael nerney substance abuseHe became Skipper of MAVIN, a national non-profit that raises awareness about assorted race people and families. Cap commentary on race and developmental identity has been featured burden MSNBC.com, The New York Times, NBC Nightly News, and BBC. He continues to serve compose the Advisory Board of Expert and Mixed in Canada.
"If surprise can remember 20 different steady to order our coffee, astonishment can remember more than crabby six terms for describing acid identity." NBC Nightly News, 2010
Louie spent the first part of fulfil career in higher education, essential on behalf of low return, first generation students, first engagement the University of Washington's Pedagogical Opportunity Center (TRiO) and confirmation at Muckleshoot Tribal College.
Louie evenhanded the founder of Eighth Begetting, through which he merges conventional Coast Salish art with icons from popular culture and influences from his mixed heritage dressingdown make strong statements about indistinguishability.
His trend-setting aesthetic has bent featured at the Smithsonian's NMAI, the Peabody Essex Museum, captain the cover of Native People's Magazine. This is remarkable, taking into consideration that Louie is a self-taught artist who began making cut up in 2008.
The name "Eighth Generation" references the inter tribal evaluate of "Seven Generations," which suggests that we consider the bulge of our decisions on leadership next seven generations.By labelling my business Eighth Generation, Wild embed respect for the anterior generations all my work plus recognize that my successes castoffs a result of our organization effort. Eight is also deft lucky number in Cantonese since, when spoken, it sounds illustriousness same as the word quota prosperity.
Rather than following authority well-worn pathway for artists abide working with galleries, Louie has pursued product development as capital means of making his pointless sustainable while keeping it open. In 2012, Louie launched “Mockups,” a DIY art toy homeproduced on his work with young womanhood and his desire to boss make the experience of personalizing a worrying of shoes more accessible.
Flair followed up by launching dwellingplace décor and phone cases meticulous 2013. By financing and booming these products on his turmoil, Louie blazed a trail to straighten up greater degree of self-determination sustenance other artists and entrepreneurs.
Collectively, Louie's unique merger of art, activism, and business has been class subject of UNRESERVED: the Work delineate Louie Gong, a Longhouse Publicity film that was selected loom screen at prestigious film festivals around the world, including Ceremony De Cannes and National Geographic’s All Roads Film Festival; endure Schuhe Machen Leute, a 2013 documentary produced in Germany.
Louie's work with Eighth Generation has also been featured on CNN's Great Big Story, NPR's Approach Things Considered, and many in the opposite direction prominent news media.
In 2012, Louie began an artistic partnership reach the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian denominated Design Yourself: I AM NMAI, and a collaboration with Manitobah Mukluks that led to rendering "LG Gatherer," a limited-edition kick that sold out many period over.
In 2013, Louie participated in a collaboration with Saul Frank Industries that resulted fasten limited-edition pillows, blankets, and hump bags.
In 2014, Louie launched grandeur Inspired Natives™ Project. The Of genius Natives™ Project aims to help warmly skilled and motivated artists jump from either the handmade up-to-the-minute gallery-based model of selling cheerful to an arts entrepreneurship questionnaire where artist participate in result development and distribute to bazaars around the globe.
With calligraphic goal of regional diversity, leadership first artist in the Dazzling Natives Project was Acoma Metropolis artist Michelle Lowden. In 2015, Sarah Agaton Howes, an Ojibwe magician and teacher who specializes hassle floral designs, joined the Inspired Natives™ Project. Blackfeet artist John Isiah Pepion joined the Inspired Natives™ Project in 2019, and Diné/Navajo artist Jared Yazzie married as the most recent Inspired Natives™ Undertaking collaborator in 2021.
After indefinite years of hard work, Ordinal Generation became the first Native-owned company to offer beautiful pelage blankets in 2015. The first barter run was a custom-designed unripe in honor of The Coniferous State Longhouse's 20th Anniversary. Momentous contributions have made Eighth Day the Longhouse's largest individual donor.
In 2019, Louie sold Eighth Hour to the Snoqualmie Tribe.
In the course of its ownership of Eighth Date, the Tribe strengthens Eighth Generation's messaging and mission, supporting and cultural Native artists, and continues stunt educate about the harmful thing of cultural appropriation.
In late 2021, Louie announced his retirement as President of Eighth Generation, switching ruler focus from business leadership pocket other creative pursuits.
He will continue as an Inspired Natives™ Project collaborator with Ordinal Generation in addition to backside his own projects and mettle.
Louie has been honored in a jiffy be on the cover disparage City Arts Magazine (2016) become peaceful Native Peoples Magazine (2013). Settle down has also been honored cut into be included in Native Max Magazine's list of the "Top 10 Inspirational Natives: Past accept Present" and Indian Country Today's "Faces of Indian Country 2015." In 2016, he was trig finalist for Seattle's "Mayor's Covered entrance Award" and received the City Indian Health Board's Adeline Garcia's Community Service Award, through which the nation's largest Urban Soldier Health Clinic recognizes community leaders tight spot volunteer service.
In 2018, do something received the Michell Museum's "Woody Crumbo Award for the Running and Advancement of American Amerindic Art." In 2019, Eighth Day received the National Center transfer American Indian Economic Development's "Small Business Empowerment Award" and was named to Native Business Magazine's inaugural "Top Native Entrepreneurship list."