Celebrate Native American Heritage Month in Los Angeles

November is Native American Heritage Month in Los Angeles! Presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA), this year's theme is Firekeepers: Honoring Tribal Firefighters, Indigenous Stewardship and Future Ancestors.

Each year, the Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian Commission selects outstanding Los Angeles County American Indian and Alaska Native community members to recognize as Native American Heritage Month honorees. Here are the 2025 honorees:

• Spirit of Tradition - The Chapter House and founder Emma Robbins, a community organization based in Echo Park, led by Native Women
• Spirit of Community - Tencha Chavez, her commitment to community includes advancing healing and equity for Native communities
• Spirit of Creativity - Meztli Projects, an Indigenous creative studio and cultural platform that centers Native voices

Read on for highlights of LA events celebrating our Native American communities.

On Friday, November 7, join 2025 Native American Heritage Month Chair, Councilwoman Imelda Padilla; the Los Angeles City Council and the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) to officially commemorate and celebrate the opening of Native American Heritage Month in the City of Los Angeles. Visit the exhibition in DCA’s Henry P. Rio Bridge Gallery at City Hall, featuring artwork by Native American artists, on view through December 2.

Grounded (ongoing)
Forged from the land itself, contemporary ceramics reflect an intimate working relationship with the environment and centuries’ worth of artistic tradition. Displayed in the Irene Helen Jones Parks Gallery, GROUNDED: Contemporary Ceramics, Gifts of Dr. Loren G. Lipson features major examples of contemporary Native ceramics by Roxanne Swentzell (Santa Clara Pueblo), Richard Zane Smith (Wyandotte), Wallace Nez (Navajo), and Courtney Leonard (Shinnecock).

Human Nature (ongoing)
On view in the Bank of America Gallery, Human Nature focuses on four key California stories - Salmon, Fire, Desert, Plants - illustrated with Native American objects and contemporary artworks, photography, soundscapes and multimedia displays.

Future Imaginaries (through Jun. 21, 2026)
Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion and Technology is a group exhibition that includes more than 50 works from artists like Andy Everson, Ryan Singer and Neil Ambrose Smith. Some of the works are displayed throughout the museum to bring together contemporary commentary with historic pieces within the Autry collection. The exhibit also includes Virgil Ortiz’s installation, Revolt 1680/2180 and Wendy Red Star’s Stirs Up the Dust.

Part of the World Cinema Series, the Central Library presents Guie’dani's Navel, screening at 1pm on Saturday, November 15. Brought to Mexico City to work as a housekeeper, Guie’dani resists the subtle oppression of a wealthy family and begins forging her own identity through a rebellious new friendship.

NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA) hosts its November Monthly Film Festival, which features its annual InFocus: Indigenous Cinema program, which highlights the work of indigenous filmmakers in front of and behind the camera, the Los Angeles Premiere of Shakti, writer-director Nani Sahra Walker’s narrative debut feature, and November Shorts, an offering of highlights from NFMLA’s ongoing general program.

The prestigious LA Skins Fest is an annual gathering for film industry insiders, cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and critics. The LA Skins Fest is considered a major launching ground for Indian Country’s most talked about films. Founded in 2007, the LA Skins Fest, presented in the historic TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, is a multi-day cultural event celebrating the art of film, TV and new media. The festival's long‐standing commitment is to join filmmakers and film connoisseurs together to experience great cinema. The exciting schedule features dozens of filmmakers presenting their newest works, special artist development programs, tributes to community leaders, special events and remarkable films.

Now on view at the Fowler Museum on the UCLA campus, Fire Kinship: Southern California Native Ecology and Art reintroduces Indigenous fire practices as vital ecological tools, featuring cultural and contemporary works by Southern California Native communities in dialogue with land, ceremony and environmental sovereignty.

Grounded invites visitors to see land not just as terrain, but as a foundation for exploring ecology, sovereignty, memory, and home. Featuring 35 artists based in the Americas and the Pacific, the exhibition showcases 40 works, spanning the 1970s to today, with many on view for the first time. Works include Lisa Reihana’s monumental video installation In Pursuit of Venus [infected] that reimagines colonial narratives from her perspective as a Māori artist; photographs and video by Clarissa Tossin, Laura Aguilar and Ana Mendieta that trace the artists’ bodies in dialogue with the earth; paintings and sculptures by Eamon Ore Girón, Courtney M. Leonard and Rose B. Simpson that blend technology with Indigenous iconography and craft; and works by Leslie Martinez and Abraham Cruzvillegas that upcycle everyday materials to document consumption and to suggest possibilities for renewal.

Modeled after reservation flea markets, the biannual LA NDN Flea Market brings together Indigenous vendors, nonprofits, DJs and performers in a vibrant celebration of Native culture, creativity and community. The Winter LA NDN Flea Market is taking place at The Broad from 10am to 5pm on Saturday, December 13.