Monica Jo Raphael, Anishinaabe-Lakota is a culture bearer, grandmother and fifth generation quill worker who comes from a long line of woodland quill artists and feels as if she’s having a dialogue with her ancestors when creating her interpretation of an art that predates European contact and the introduction of glass seed beads. Spending most of her life in the village of Peshawbestown on the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Reservation, she learned the traditional woodland art form of quill and birch bark box making. Quickly mastering both the woodland flora and fauna designs for which her family was known, Monica has excelled in creating even more complex designs while using traditional materials and techniques along with bright modern colors to create a modern twist to a timeless artform.

Her award-winning work is quickly becoming known all over the world for its clear intention to craftsmanship, unwavering dedication to patience, and has received awards at the Smithsonian National Craft Show, SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market, Cherokee Art Market, Eiteljorg Indian Market Festival, Heard Indian Market, Abbe Museum Indian Market, Autry Indian Market, Southeastern Art Show and Market, Artesian Arts Festival, and the Woodland Indian Market.

After working over 25 years helping to make data driven change in tribal communities Monica made a career change to follow a lifelong dream of becoming a self-sustaining full- time artist and in 2021 she was awarded the prestigious First Peoples Fund Cultural Capital and the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation LIFT Fellowships.

Her celebrated work can be found in several personal collections, as well as the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art, the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College, and the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

In September 2023 Monica relocated from Oklahoma to Indianapolis accepting the position of Thomas G. and Susan C. Hoback curator of Great Lakes Native art, cultures and community engagement at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art.