tókša | I will see you again

tókša | I Will See You Again presents beaded works and photography by Jaida Grey Eagle, an Oglala Lakota artist from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Created in relation to her homeland and community, this exhibition brings together cyanotype photographs and beaded earrings that in unison, reflect Grey Eagle’s relationship to land, culture, and storytelling.

Grounded in lived experience, and motivated to reclaim visual sovereignty, Grey Eagle overrides a long history of photographic misrepresentation of Lakota communities. Through tókša | I Will See You Again, Grey Eagle presents images and beadwork rooted in belonging, while honouring the enduring legacy of her ancestors.

Embracing the power of the sun, the cyanotype process harnesses light to create ethereal images that evoke a sense of spirituality and memory. Grey Eagle’s focus on plants and medicines reflect their sacred role as sources of healing. Through this spiritual relationship to land, Grey Eagle’s work offers a way to engage with these traumatic histories, while celebrating the beauty. Her handmade beaded earrings embody living tradition, carrying cultural knowledge through contemporary artistic practice.

The exhibition takes its title from the Lakota word tókša, meaning "I will see you again." Rather than saying goodbye, the phrase expresses the expectation of return, not only as a physical act, but an ongoing process of remembering, reconnecting, and reclamation. The land remembers Grey Eagle as much as she remembers it.