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Photos: Harvest of All First Nations Corn Festival celebrates food sovereignty and community

KUNC | By Manual Aragon

Published October 1, 2024 at 10:43 AM MDT

A young woman in traditional powwow attire stands near other young women who are dancing — Head Girl of the Corn Festival Joslyn Running Wolf performs during the Third Annual Corn Festival Powwow on Sept. 28 in Longmont, Colo.

Harvest for All First Nations, an organization based in Boulder that focuses on Indigenous food sovereignty, held its third annual Corn Festival in Longmont this past weekend. The all-day event kicked off with an Aztec ceremony honoring the harvest, and also included a panel discussion on the Indigenous land reclamation movement, a traditional foods cooking demonstration and Native American musical performances.

A woman in a pink dress adorned in a jingle dress with metal jingles, a beaded rainbow necklace and beaded earings stands in the sun with her hands on her hips.

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Kimberly Dominguez, one of the dancers from Rocky Mountain Indigenous Dancers poses before performing.

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A woman stands on a stage and holds a microphone to her mouth as she sings

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Stella StandingBear, the headliner of the Corn Festival, performed songs from her new album.

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An Indigenous man stands smiling wearing a bandana on his head and a beaded necklace

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Calvin Standing Bear stands at the Corn Festival in Longmont, Colo.

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A woman in a bright red flowing skirt holds a red and black ribbon and swirls it in the air

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During one of several musical performances, Sedona Moreno-Castelan dances along at the Corn Festival. The event featured music, educational talks, a powwow and an Indigenous food court.

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A beaded necklace that features horsehair and blue and orange beadwork

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A detail of Calvin Standing Bear's necklace during the Corn Festival.

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A woman wearing a red hat and colorful bandana sings into a microphone while playing a black guitar. She wears a colorful ribbon skirt in floras and yellow ribbon.

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Melissa Ivey sings during her performance at the Corn Festival. The festival was held to highlight Indigenous culture and traditions as well as celebrate Indigenous talen.

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A man wearing sunglasses and a black shirt wears a beaded necklace in the shape of a bear claw.

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Chasing Hawk Standing Bear wears a beaded necklace and poses for a photo at the Corn Festival.

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An alter made of corn husks and flowers stands in a field with flowers surrounding it and a tipi in the background.

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Part of the Corn Festival was the Corn Mother alter, which was created by the artist Cal Duran. The alter was also used for those who wanted spiritual cleansing.

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Flowers sit at the base of the Corn Mother alter.

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A man wearing a beaded circle and headband with draping beadwork in yellow and black and red with lightening bolts stands with a chestplate and ribbons coming off of his shoulders

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Anthony Martinez, one of the dancers from Rocky Mountain Indigenous Dancers, stands for a photos before performing.

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Young boys wearing traditional powwow dancing attire stand next to one another. One boy raches out and pats the other on the back.

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Prior to the children's dancing competition, young boys line up next to each other.

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A woman wearing a blue jingle dress and blue beadwork smiles

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Following her performance, festival headliner Jackie Bird smiles.

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A woman sits in a chair while another woman behind her braids her hair. They are both dressed in traditional powwow attire.

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Prior to the powwow, Shaheila Holt sits and has her hair braided by Raelene Whiteshield.

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A young woman holds her arms wide and holds a shawl that has many ribbons coming off of it as she dances. She has one foot bent off the ground and is dipping sideways.

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Joslyn Running Wolf, head girl of the festival, performed during the powwow.

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Two women can be seen dancing under a tent.

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Dancers perform during the competitive portion of the powwow.

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an up close photo of the drum and drumsticks from a powwow

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Bad Company Singers performed all of the drum music for the Corn Festival Powwow.

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Bad Company Singers performed all of the drum music for the Corn Festival Powwow.

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The light illuminates a dancer's headdress during the closing ceremony at the Corn Festival Powwow in Longmont, Colo.

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The artful beadwork and creation of a powwow dress is illuminated in the closing ceremony lights at the Corn Festival.

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After performing at the Corn Festival powwow, children walk away from the grounds at sunset. The Corn Festival was hosted by the Harvest of All Nations in Longmont on September 28.

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The photography in this story is funded by the Reflecting Colorado Photo Desk grant. KUNC, with support from the Colorado Media Project, aims to diversify visual storytelling by showcasing the rich cultural tapestry of the Centennial State. The Photo Desk project is a step towards embracing digital innovation and fostering inclusivity in storytelling.