Aloha from your humble Fabuloso

I was born among the dinosaurs surrounding Tuba City, Arizona wayyy back in the summer of 1976. Proudly Diné with a CIB to prove it to anyone questioning Uncle Sam’s quantum requirements. Storytelling was always a passion, but illustration was the gift I bestowed upon myself with dedication and practice. I continue this art journey through this website and other avenues of communication equipped with an iPad, some elbow grease and a dream from which I cannot wake.

Some of you might not know everything you need to know about Dale Ray Deforest.

You should be ashamed. You were told there would be a test. It was on the syllabus. This exam will make up 300% of your overall grade. Failing notices will be sent to your local comic shop, your mother, and your fifth grade teacher.

First question.

  1. Dale Ray Deforest is:
    A) A Golden Age Science Fiction author who once fought L. Ron Hubbard bare-knuckles and shirtless on the steps of the Brooklyn public library
    B) A Kentucky politician who once campaigned on the platform of mandatory pants for livestock
    C) A 21st century Diné artist and illustrator whose style is at once surprising and familiar, innovative yet classic, a man who always smells fresher than fresh.

  2. A poster of Dale Ray Deforest’s Kill Bill parody is hanging:
    A) In the Vatican
    B) in the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland
    C) In the Ladies room at the Albuquerque bus station

  3. Dale Ray Deforest is single-handedly responsible for:
    A) The dramatic increase in numbers and size of lobsters worldwide
    B) The coming alien invasion
    C) the cover art for Rebecca Roanhorse’s Race to the Sun

  4. Dale Ray Deforest’s two independent series Hero Twins and Rez Luv have inspired:
    A) graffiti in restrooms across the US
    B) scrutiny from the U.S. secret service
    C) artists and writers across genres and media and across Indian Country to produce meaningful and authentic work.

  5. Dale Ray Deforest’s pop culture parodies have garnered legions of:
    A) lawsuits for copyright infringement
    B) Temu knock-offs in sizes limited to women’s small and medium
    C) fans across the internet

  6. Dale Ray Deforest’s work has been displayed:
    A) next to the mug shots in the New Mexico Bureau of Investigation Albuquerque office
    B) in NASA’s Voyager space ship
    C) along side pieces by fine artists James Luna, Allan Houser, and Rose B. Simpson.

He’s genuinely impressive. His work conveys both humor and pathos and is unmistakably his own. He’s humble. He’s lactose intolerant and one of the most distinctive and truly iconic illustrators of our times.

[written on behalf of Dale Ray Deforest by] Weyodi Oldbear