Rebecca

Kunz

Artist & Illustrator

Owner of Tree of Life Studio

Travels from: Santa Fe, NM

“[Rebecca’s] art is an incredible mix of Cherokee iconography and traditional motifs and symbols, all worked seamlessly into the story.” — School Library Journal

Rebecca Lee Kunz is an artist, illustrator, and the owner of Tree of Life Studio. She was awarded the 2025 Randolph Caldecott Award for her illustrations in the picture book Chooch Helped. A citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Rebecca’s work draws upon tribal iconography, archetypal symbolism, and mythology. A visual storyteller and folklorist, she hopes to illuminate awareness about our shifting climate and to inspire solutions to the issues of today. Her work can be found in museum shops, galleries, online, in picture books, and in editorial illustrations.

Rebecca speaks about illustrating children’s books, being the artist and owner of a woman-owned business, how to make a living as an artist, working with publishing companies, how to find your voice as an artist, how to sell your artwork, iconography and symbolism in illustration, environmental justice in art, endangered species in art, and how to use your platform to bring about change.

Rebecca sells her work at the Museum of Contemporary Native Art, Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Museum of International Folk Art, New Mexico History Museum, Gilcrease Museum, Santa Ynez Chumash Museum and Cultural Center, Denver Botanical Gardens and the Cherokee Nation Gift shop, among others.

She is finishing her second book Ruth Muskrat and the Indian Problem with her sister, Jen Loren (Senior Director Cherokee Film). Her publisher is Levine Querido.

Chooch Helped

Levine Querido |

October 8, 2024

Children’s

A Cherokee girl introduces her younger brother to their family’s traditions — begrudgingly! — in this picture book written by Walter Award-winner Andrea L. Rogers and featuring gorgeous collage illustrations from debut artist Rebecca Lee Kunz.

Sissy’s younger brother, Chooch, isn’t a baby anymore. They just celebrated his second birthday, after all. But no matter what Chooch does — even if he’s messing something up! Which is basically all the time! — their parents say he’s just “helping.” Sissy feels that Chooch can get away with anything!

When Elisi paints a mural, Chooch helps. When Edutsi makes grape dumplings, Chooch helps. When Oginalii gigs for crawdads, Chooch helps. When Sissy tries to make a clay pot, Chooch helps . . .

“Hesdi!” Sissy yells. Quit it! And Chooch bursts into tears. What follows is a tender family moment that will resonate with anyone who has welcomed a new little one to the fold. Chooch Helped is a universal story of an older sibling learning to make space for a new child, told with grace by Andrea L. Rogers and stunning art from Rebecca Lee Kunz showing one Cherokee family practicing their cultural traditions.

BIPOC Representation, Kid-Lit: Picture Books & Early Readers, Native American & Indigenous Heritage

Illustrating Children's Books

I walk the audience through how to begin in children’s book illustration, how to find thier style in children’s book illustration, how to work with publishing companies and art directors, and how to create illustrations in ProCreate, how to create artwork for end pages, covers, spots, and back-matter, how to create compositions that work with the long frame of the picture book, how to work around the book “gutter”, how to create compelling editorial illustrations, how to get work in front of an audience, agents, publishers, and clients.

You Can Make a Living from your Art: Advice and idea making from an artist and owner of a woman-owned business,

How to make a living as an artist, how to sell art online and in shops, how to create a compelling online presence and beautiful website. I walk people through all the different ways and techniques of making a living as an artist both online and in galleries and museum shops. I give specific examples and steps and a practical tutorial of how to run a business while also having a good work-life balance. I talk specifically about making affordable art, reproductions, and art merchandise, in order to make a sustainable living.

Find Your Authentic “Voice" as an Artist

I describe and walk artists through how to find their authentic “voice” as an artist, how to create art freely and work through artist block, and how to develop their own ideas, concepts, and compositions from start to finish. I walk people through a series of steps in a creative process so that they will leave feeling confident about creating and finishing artwork.

Children's Book Readings, School Visits, Book Signings, and Q and A

Book reading with elementary, middle school, high school, and college student students. We can dive into any or all of the following topics after the reading, depending on the age of the group:

We dive into the anatomy of books, how I created the illustrations in the particular book, how I used ProCreate to make the illustrations, why I created the specific illustrations, why I included tribal iconography and symbology in the book, how to convey emotion through characters, character development, developing a color palette for a book, developing consistency throughout the book, finding an authentic illustration style for a book, social emotional development, and the process of making a book from start to finish. I talk to the audience about their own artwork and ask them questions. We often go into an art project afterward (eg: how to make a pinch pot from the book Chooch Helped) based on the book. I talk to audience about their own cultural symbols and iconography, and asked the participants to do their own research. I also work with the teachers about how they can use the study guide from of the book. We finish with a Q&A.

Environmental and Social Justice in Art

How to create bring about environmental and social change through artwork an illustrations. I describe how to bridge environmental and social justice and artwork. I describe how to inspire change and give their audience ways to make become change-makers and to give their audience a sense of agency.

“What Becca has done as an image-maker seems to me to be something more than ordinary illustration. She is a translator of the unseen, giving us a lens with which to see inside our hearts. What she translates into the story of a helpful little boy is the essence of what it means to be human: love.” — Kyce Bello, Horn Book, 2025

“The touching narrative and its universal lesson are brought to life through Kunz’s powerful images, which make stunning use of collage to illustrate the children’s rich familial and cultural webs.” — Kirkus Reviews, 2024

“Tribal designs and patterns, in hues of sand and clay, add texture to this touching picture book narrated in English and Cherokee by an older sister as she experiences the sorrows and joys of letting her 2-year-old brother ‘help’.” — The New York Times Book Review, 2024

“The art is an incredible mix of Cherokee iconography and traditional motifs and symbols, all worked seamlessly into the story.” — Betsy Bird, School Library Journal, 2024

Tree of Life Studio

Tree of Life Studio Blog

Rebecca’s Portfolio

Honors, Awards & Recognition

American Indians in Youth Literature Picture Book Award, 2026
Solo Exhibition. Historic Santa Fe Foundation El Zaguan Gallery, 2025
Bank Street College of Education’s Best Books of 2025
Randolf Caldecott Medal, 2025
Kirkus Best Picture Books of the Year, 2024
Kirkus Reviews 150 Most Anticipated Books of the Fall, 2024
Cherokee Cultural Pathway Permanent Sculpture Installation, 2024
Solo Exhibition. Lloyd Kiva New Gallery at the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts. Santa Fe, NM, 2021