From the Smithsonian:
"The Codes We Carry" (2022) brings together a team of sled dogs dressed in tuppies, or blankets, that represent specific diseases.
Artist Erica Lord (Athabascan/Iñupiat) created the blankets using DNA analysis that produces color-coded geometric patterns. Each tiny glass bead correlates to one segment of genetic code. She trimmed the dog blankets with fabric, fringe and bells, as is found in many historic examples.
Lord’s dog blankets represent diseases that have had a particular impact on Alaska Native tribes, such as diphtheria, smallpox, ovarian cancer, tuberculosis, diabetes and COVID-19.
The dogs' blankets carry the disease burdens, but they also deliver the cures: antitoxins and vaccines...

See this piece in “Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023,” with artworks by six Native American or Alaska Native artists, now at our Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery's #RenwickGallery.
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