Margaret Roach Wheeler

Chickasaw textile designer Margaret Roach Wheeler (b. 1943, South Dakota) honors the spirit of her maternal ancestor, Mahota, and the legacy of creative Chickasaw women. Wheeler has become known internationally as a painter, sculptor, educator, Native historian, and award-winning weaver. From her earliest business in handwoven fashions to creative textiles and fine art, Wheeler’s art and work continue today in original handwovens and in the national brand of Mahota Textiles that tell the stories of the Chickasaw Nation and five other tribes. The legacy of Mahota; Nancy Mahota; grandmother, Juel; and mother, Rubey span centuries of tradition and craftsmanship handed down through generations of Indigenous makers. Through her detailed historical research and creative innovation, Wheeler connects the inspiration of her ancestors to the contemporary world.
 

Wheeler’s intricate textiles have been exhibited at institutions, including the Anchorage Museum of Art and History, Anchorage, AK; Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, NY; Museum of Art and Design, New York City, NY; Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Santa Fe, NM; Naples Museum of Art, Naples, FL; National Museum of the American Indian, New York City, NY; Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK; Weisman Art Museum, Minneapolis, MN; and Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, Santa Fe, NM.

Her works are in the collections of the Eiteljorg Museum, Indianapolis, IN; Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ; Museum of Arts and Culture, Santa Fe, NM; Portland Museum of Art, OR; and Toledo Museum of Art, OH. Alongside her museum exhibitions, her “Street Clothes” weavings have been featured in numerous fashion shows. A 2000 Smithsonian research fellowship provided her the opportunity to study the designs and textiles of her ancestors, the Mississippians and the Mound Builders. Her handwoven works were featured as the regalia worn by clan members in Jerod Tate’s 2024 classical composition of Clans, set in the Mound Builder Era (900–1500 AD). She will be giving the keynote address at the Midwest Weavers’ conference in St. Louis, MO, this year.

Wheeler has earned numerous awards including Best of Class-Heard Museum Indian Market, First place in SWAIA (Santa Fe Indian Market), and Purchase Award at Eiteljorg. In 2010, she was inducted into the Chickasaw Nation Hall of Fame and was honored by the State of Oklahoma with the Governor’s Arts Award in 2018 for her unique contributions to art.