2008 Southwest Indian Art Fair Featured Artist: Vino Leon Manuel

"When I draw, I can feel the flow of the artwork and the spirits as they come together in harmony." – Vino Manuel

Flow and harmony are hallmarks of Vino Leon Manuel's art. They are also unexpected hallmarks of his life. Conflicting and divergent aspects of his life flow through him, not as troublesome influencers, but as inspirational spirits, all converging in the harmonious, vibrant style that bursts from his pens and pencils.

He belongs to two very different tribal communities, one in southern Arizona, one in northern Arizona. Two very different artistic bloodlines flow through in his veins, Tohono O'odham and Hopi. The very different traditions and ceremonies of both his mother and father inspire him. Two very different lifestyles influence him, rural and urban. "I am half Tohono O’odham and half Hopi. My father is Jerome Manuel from the Hickiwan Village of the Tohono O'odham Reservation, outside of Sells, Arizona. My mother is Vera Ami from the First Mesa village of Sichomovi, of the Wild Mustard (As’wug’wa) Clan, related to the Roadrunner, Chaquina, and Ko’Ko’pele (Wu’ya) Clans."

 A child of many homes, he was abruptly extracted from a traditional, rural Tohono O’odham household and transplanted into an urban, Hopi-centric household. "I was born on the Tohono O'odham reservation and lived with my father. As a small child, I knew only the Tohono O’odham language. When I was four years old, my mother came to get me and took me to Phoenix. I was taken from my father, my traditions and my language. I did not know English or Hopi so trying to communicate with my new family was difficult. I just remember wanting to go back to my father." He even got a new surname at that time - Nowlin.

Despite a situation that most would find tumultuous and even damaging, Manuel managed to reconcile his circumstances with wisdom beyond his age. Somewhere along the line, he learned to see the world as flowing streams of experiences and began using that vision as inspiration for the artistic talent he discovered in himself, bringing harmony and balance to his life. Bursting with raw talent, Manuel is primarily a self-taught artist. He started drawing at an early age and says his abilities were showing at the age of 5. His pieces began winning awards while a student at Carl Hayden High School in Phoenix. 

On his mother’s side, pottery making is a strong tradition. His maternal grandmother is Norma Ami and he is also related to Jacob Koopee, Jr., another well-known Hopi potter. "Right now, my artwork is my Hopi heritage," he says. “My drawings focus on kachinas, animals, pottery designs, dancers and ceremonies. The bright colors blend in detail with traditional and modern designs. When I draw, I can feel the flow of the artwork and the spirits as they come together in harmony.”

 Recently, Manuel reunited with his father and changed his last name from Nowlin back to his birth name. Now traveling with his father to various ceremonies, all the while regaining insight into the Tohono O’odham traditions that nurtured him as a toddler, his artistic horizons are most definitely expanding. “My father is also an artist and works primarily in paint. He has a mural in the library of the Sells hospital. Annie Manuel, the well-known Tohono O’odham pottery maker, is my aunt.”

Just 27 now, he is still learning how his dual tribal affiliations, with all their different ceremonies and traditions, will manifest themselves in his art. This well-grounded and surprisingly well-adjusted young man has a long and most certainly successful career ahead of him. His awards include the 2007 Award of Excellence in two dimensional art at Arizona State Museum’s Southwest Indian Art Fair and the 2007 First Place and Third Place awards in mixed media from the Southwest Association for Indian Arts in Santa Fe.

Vino Manuel is the Featured Artist for Arizona State Museum’s 2008 Southwest Indian Art Fair. His pencil drawing "Warrior Boy and Girl" is the featured piece and can be seen on posters, postcards, and ads. Manuel can found at Table B3 during the Fair on February 23 and 24.

For more about the Southwest Indian Art Fair – Click Here.