Pete Moye’
Arts Button

Originating from an Apache Indian mother and father who is Cherokee and French, Michelle Cody is proud to express her Native American descent in her paintings.

Majoring in sociology and growing as an artist, Cody, also known as “Speaks with Deer,” has managed to stand out from her peers in her advanced painting class.

“Since the beginning of last semester, I have not been able to put the brush down,” Cody said.

Cody also added that she accepts the verity of being good at painting because of her passion for art.

Culturally, she claims to be very open about the content through any work of art.

In her family background, her mother would also oil paint and put together beaded jewelry.

Because of the lead contained in oil paints in the past, her mother suffered lead poisoning and she was hospitalized for treatment and hasn’t picked up the brush ever since.

Cody did, however, start on tole painting and crochet, something Michelle never really picked up on.

A younger family member that is also learning art is Cody’s 11-year-old daughter.

“In our culture, we use art as a learning tool and as a teaching tool,” she said.

Future plans for Cody would be to help children in poor health through art therapy.

Cody says she thinks of her talent as a gift from “The Creator” and it has been her passion since she was a little girl.

Through her experience, Cody uses art as a form of meditation.

“I go to another place,” she explained, “It helps me express a part of who I am.”

Considered to be a reserved and quiet person by her peers, painting helps Cody to express her true feelings and emotions on the moment.

However, Cody had lost the sense of inspiration through a series of life experiences, including that of her husband’s death, but she came back through her friend, Peter Ojeda, a man she considers to be her mentor.

“He taught me about life, and how important it is to stay focused and to be a better person,” Cody said about Ojeda.

As a demonstration of her gratitude toward the help she has received, Cody made Ojeda a painting, full of detail and a figure of him in the center, taking her only a week to make.

She is now working on setting up a gallery to sell her paintings through the support of a friend who owns a museum.

Tony “Little Hawk”, a substance-abuse counselor and Cherokee Native American spiritual healer, is a very close friend and spiritual adviser to Cody.

Teaching Cody how to draw in any way, “Little Hawk” said, “Michelle has a natural talent. She has a way of bringing forward with what she’s thinking.”

As a friend, “Little Hawk” strongly supports the idea of Cody setting up her own gallery, and also advised her to take pictures of her pieces so that she may establish building a portfolio.

“She is a very humble and loving person, she has this heart that’s as big as the world,” he said.

“I will be her friend forever, and even after that.”

She has also been a part of volunteering in a companion hospice care, to help family members cope with a loved one’s death, or someone who unfortunately awaits it.

A year away from transferring to Cal State Dominguez Hills, Cody wants to receive a bachelor’s degree in sociology.