Kelsey Mata Foote

Kelsey Mata Foote (Jaax̱snée) is a Tlingit and Filipina illustrator, writer, and producer from Ketchikan, Alaska. She prefers to work digitally with a drawing tablet but is no stranger to incorporating natural textures and watercolor elements in her pieces. Her inspiration is rooted in a Southeast Alaska childhood, one filled with family, putting up fish, exploring the Tongass with her older brothers, and celebrating her heritage. She finds joy in creating art that preserves culture, honors Native traditions, and amplifies authentic representation of Native peoples in media. Her creative work debuted with Celebration! (2022), a children’s book produced by Sealaska Heritage Institute's Baby Raven Reads program, which later received the American Indian Youth Literature Award - Picture Book Honor in 2024. Kelsey has a background in grassroots advocacy and culturally informed education. She has previously served as the Creative Editor of Restoration Magazine, a triannual publication dedicated to informing tribal leaders, advocates, and communities about emerging issues affecting American Indian and Alaska Native women. A notable work in this space includes the collaborative No More Stolen Sisters (2023) project with her brother Nick Alan Foote, featured as cover art for the June 2023 issue of Restoration and appearing as embroidered shawls in a forthcoming CDC exhibition on the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW2S+) crisis. Kelsey and her brother, Nick, are currently the lead illustrators for a three-year language revitalization project in partnership with Tlingit & Haida, the Goldbelt Heritage Foundation, Cedar Group, and several language specialists. The project spans nine children’s books and animated shorts in the Tlingit language, beginning with Kuhaantí (2023). Kelsey has upcoming publications with Penguin Random House, Medicine Wheel Publishing, and Orca Book Publishers, while serving as the art producer for the film The Last Salmon.