“Beauty comes within from ourselves, the land, our People, and the Universe, which is why I must paint.” -Monique Holiday

Monique Holiday is a Diné painter whose work reflects interconnected energies between the land, her heritage, animals, and universe. She works primarily with acrylic, digital paints, watercolor, and oil. As a child during the 1990s, Monique enjoyed watching her father, Leland Holiday, as he painted and carved his Navajo folk art. After learning a few Art lessons from her dad, Monique kept drawing and painting throughout her K-12 years. During her senior year at Bloomfield High School, Holiday competed against 94 high school art students across the the Four Corners region. She won 1st place with her tribute painting to Jean-Michel Basquiat in 2014. That same year, Monique became a representing Artist at Toh-Atin Gallery alongside her father for a future decade. In 2023, Holiday graduated with a Bachelor’s in Studio Arts Painting from the Institute of American Indian Arts. The following year, she received her Associate’s in Liberal Arts from San Juan College.

Holiday is pursuing her Master’s in Teaching at the Fort Lewis College Graduate Program. She served five years in showcasing hundreds of diverse artists across the Four Corners region, primarily Indigenous Nations. Monique is currently curating Art exhibitions while still dedicating a part of her time to paint. In the near future, she plans to become an Art professor and teach within her community. Monique’s work has been acquired by private, national, and international collectors in the United States, England, Ireland, France, Germany, Africa, and Brazil.