Eighth Generation has launched a new blanket design featuring the artwork of popular Phoenix-based artist and entrepreneur, Jared Yazzie (Diné) of OXDX. (Check out Native Business Magazine‘s recent coverage of the Seattle-based company and its 10-year anniversary: “Eighth Generation Is Changing the Way Native Artists Do Business.”)Eighth Generation revitalized the outdated wool blanket market in 2015 by becoming the first Native-owned company to offer wool blankets and applying fair trade practices for Native artists. This blanket collaboration with OXDX will be among the highest profile of Eighth Generation’s 45 blanket designs, each designed by a Native artist.A self-taught graphic artist, entrepreneur, and designer, Yazzie is known for his bold, graphic style that incorporates vibrant Diné motifs with messages of Native empowerment. His work has been featured on CNN, The Wall Street Journal, Refinery 29, Huffington Post, the Smithsonian Institution, and more.Eighth Generation Project Manager, Serene Lawrence (Anishinaabe/Hopi) said in a company press release, “We are excited to be partnering with Jared, an artist that’s both grounded in community and shooting for the stars. Together we will highlight a fact that is lost on large companies that profit off of fake Native art – that authentic Native art, artists, and stories add value.”The “Tribute” wool blanket pays homage to traditional rug designs woven by Jared’s grandmothers. Within Navajo weaving, clues to where a rug has been woven can be found in patterns originating from specific areas, or colors of yarn dyed from particular plants.Yazzie said, “While my grandmothers are no longer with us, these patterns and colors remain to tell us the story of where they come from. I felt it was important to show tributes to their design through my new work. It makes me feel as if I am passing along their legacy.”The blanket is sold at Eighth Generation’s Pike Place Market store, the Eighth Generation website (www.eighthgeneration.com) and the OXDX website. This is Eighth Generation’s third blanket with a Diné artist, following recent projects with Michele Reyes and a custom blanket for Diné College.The partnership represents Native people working together to pursue economic sovereignty, which ultimately creates a cycle of support that benefits Native communities, artists, and art. Eighth Generation Founder Louie Gong (Nooksack) said, “This cycle of support includes consumers, who strengthen cultural art when they buy from Native artists and Native-owned companies.””Jared’s design process started by going to the closet to look at his Grandma’s designs. I think that’s infinitely more meaningful than some in-house designer Googling Navajo Rug or Navajo Blanket and then copying it.” he said. “Our presence on the market asks consumers to decide which process they want to strengthen with their dollar.”Eighth Generation recently released an infographic highlighting business practices that set this small but rapidly-growing Native-owned business apart from large competitors – including high percentages of Native staff, community giveback, and exclusively carrying products designed by Native artists who are paid for their work.Through the end of year, Eighth Generation plans to release at least one new blanket each month, including a baby blanket by Sarah Agaton Howes (Anishinaabe), the highly anticipated “Two Spirit” blanket by Ryan Young (Ojibwe), and the “Lightning Horse” blanket by John Isaiah Pepion (Blackfeet).