In 2024, OFN was happy to add three traditional artists to the Oregon Culture Keepers Roster. Please join us in welcoming: 

Eddie Melendrez (Ontario) is a Chicano painter. He uses acrylics to paint on canvases and wooden boards, his work is described as bold and decisive. Melendrez paints members of his community, stating “I capture moments whenever I can.” 

Yuki Martin (Washougal, WA/Portland, OR) is an origami artist, instructor, and writer. Since 2007, Yuki has taught, demonstrated, and presented origami at a multitude of community venues throughout Oregon and Washington. She is also the author of Super Cute Origami Kit: Kawaii Paper Projects You Can Decorate in Thousands of Ways!, which won the 2019 Moonbeam Children’s Book Award Bronze Medal. 

Katie Harris Murphy (Pendleton) is a bead worker and traditional artist of the Wallowa Band Nimiipuu, Cayuse, Umatilla & Karuk tribes. She is a bead worker at Harris Sisters Co., where she and her two sisters “make traditional beadwork & leatherwork while having a huge appreciation for western and Indigenous fashion.” 

Visit the links to the artists’ bios to find their contact information to book potential programming or commissions. If you are interested in joining the Culture Keeper’s Roster, visit OFN’s website.