Biography

Monique Holiday is a Diné painter whose work reflects the interconnected energies between the land, animals, and her tribe. She works primarily with acrylic, oil, and digital paints. In 2014, Holiday won her first art show with her tribute painting to Jean-Michel Basquiat at the Farmington Civic Center. That same year, she became a representing Artist at the Toh-Atin Gallery in Durango, Colorado. Since 2017, Holiday has contributed Wolf paintings at the Wolfwood Refuge in Ignacio, Colorado, to raise money for wildlife preservation. She graduated with a BFA in Painting from the Institute of American Indian Arts in 2023. This year, Holiday took second place as an “Emerging Artist” at the Pino Nuche Indigenous Art Show. Her work has been acquired by private, national, and international collectors in the United States, England, Ireland, France, Germany, Africa, and Brazil.

Additionally, Holiday is an activist for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. This October, she is selected to participate in Albuquerque’s PROTEST! Exhibition to raise Sexual Violence awareness. Besides creating art, Monique has spent four years promoting other Native Artists and their work as a Gallery Assistant. She currently works at the Henderson Fine Arts Gallery for San Juan College. This year, Holiday is graduating from San Juan College with an Associate’s degree in Liberal Arts and plans to pursue an MFA in Painting. With three degrees, she plans to become a painting professor and teach at San Juan College.