Merrell Announces Collaboration with Artist

Merrell, a hike and outdoor footwear brand, announced a collaboration with artist Jordan Ann Craig. The partnership features new designs and bold prints by Craig while celebrating indigenous design and the world in which this art was meant to traverse.

Craig is a painter born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She now lives in in northern New Mexico. Her work is changing the definition of Native American art. As a Northern Cheyenne artist, she creates narratives within her art while celebrating her ancestors and indigenous land. Her work includes paintings, prints, collages, textile prints and artist books.

The collaboration includes five pieces of footwear, one beanie, one sweatshirt and one fanny pack. Craig energized Merrell classics, including the Embark Lace, Embark Moc, Encore Ice 4, Bravada 2 Demi, and Bravada 2 Mid.

Merrell’s recent Inclusivity in the Outdoors Report found indigenous peoples face discriminatory barriers to being in their natural homes, with 22 percent indicating they have experienced discriminatory treatment when outside. A 2021 study found that indigenous peoples in the United States have lost nearly 99 percent of the land they once inhabited despite having a traditional, deeply connected relationship with Earth.

In tandem with the collaboration, Merrell supports the Fort Robinson Outbreak Spiritual Run with a $45,000 donation toward the 2024 run. With $3 from each item sold in the collection benefitting next year’s run. Merrell also outfitted each child in the Jan. 18-14 run with head-to-toe apparel and shoes

The annual 400-mile run commemorates the Northern Cheyenne breakout of Fort Robinson and began as a tribute to its ancestors. Now, in its 27th year, the run is a forum for healing and wellness; youth leadership and empowerment; cultural and language preservation; environmental justice; and creating social change.

For more information on Merrell, visit merrell.com.Craig’s pieces can be found online at www.merrell.com/us/en/jordan-ann-craig.