Eighth Generation: How a Seattle Company is Defining the Native American Dream

Louie Gong (Nooksack), founder of Eighth Generation, is a self-taught artist who was raised by his grandparents in the Nooksack tribal community in northwest Washington. Louie’s unique style merges traditional Coast Salish art with influences from his mixed heritage and urban environment to create work that resonates widely across communities and cultures.

Serene Lawrence (Anishinaabe, Hopi) is the Project Manager at Eighth Generation. Serene is a jingle dress dancer from the Hopi and Ojibwe tribal nations, located in Arizona and Wisconsin respectively. In her role as Project Manager, Serene works in collaboration with Native artists across the country to create custom blankets and gifts.

Stephanie Masterman is Tlingit from Southeast Alaska and from the Wooshkeetaan Clan of Hoonah. Stephanie is the Retail Manager at Eighth Generation’s flagship store at Pike Place Market, the only Native-owned business in downtown Seattle. Stephanie also studies the Tlingit language at the University of Alaska Southeast.

John Isaiah Pepion (Blackfeet) is a Plains Indian graphic artist based out of the Blackfeet reservation in north-central Montana. John is known for his contemporary ledger art, a tradition that developed as buffalo hide became scarce forcing Plains tribes to make artwork on ledger paper. John has been with Eighth Generation since 2018.