Amberley John is Onyote’aka (bear clan) and the newest member of the Earthline Tattoo Collective. She trained in handpoke and skin stitch tattooing methods at the 2017 Earthline Tattoo Residency in unceded syilx territory (Kelowna, BC), where she is still currently a graduate student working to complete a Master’s in Fine Arts Interdisciplinary in Indigenous Studies, at the University of British Columbia.
As an emerging artist and cultural tattoo practitioner Amberley is interested in exploring her responsibilities to multiple communities through her creative practice. It is generally understood that Bear clan members have a responsibility to learn about medicines and support healing. She focuses on Haudenosaunee designs and motifs, but also collaborates with individuals from different nations to find common or appropriate imagery.
She feels that tattoos are marks of intergenerational healing. Earthline’s care for health and safety education with regards to preventing the spread of blood borne pathogens, taking care of people with various health concerns and cultural safety is critical, as our communities strengthen our traditional practices and renew old friendships between nations.