First American Art Magazine No. 24, Fall 2019 (Oct–Dec) | Page 12

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M a r y G ay O s ce o l a
(Seminole Tribe of Florida),
Untitled, 1993, acrylic on canvas,
14 × 181/8 in., image courtesy of
the artist.
Dogs are the first pack animal
of the Americas and were the
only beast of burden in North
America prior to the European
reintroduction of the horse.
EDITOR'S GREETING
W
H E T H E R YOU are
entirely new to the world
of Native art—in which
c a s e , w e l c om e ! — or
deeply devoted to and entrenched in our
Indigenous art scene, we will strive to
challenge your perspectives, introducing
readers to new art forms or artists and
offering new views on these creative people
and their practices. An overarching theme
of this issue is radical inclusion. Too often
the mainstream art world is plagued by
elitism and gatekeeping, but Native artists
want to engage you. If you are Native or
from any other background, all these art
forms require cross-cultural understand-
ing—a leap into different worldviews and
perspectives. And there lies the core value
of art, whether visual, literary, performing,
or media-based: the ability to see the world
through another’s eyes and, in turn, under-
stand ourselves more deeply.
Miranda Belarde-Lewis, PhD (Zuni/
Tlingit) discusses radical inclusion in
“The yəhaw ̓ Phenomenon,” describing
how American Indian curators and
an Indian-American curator joined
forces to create, as the project’s website
describes, “an Indigenous-led, yearlong
project that includes satellite installations,
performances, workshops and trainings,
artists-in-residence, art markets, a publi-
cation, and partner events at more than
twenty-five sites across Coast Salish territo-
ries and beyond.” Bringing established and
emerging artists together, while drawing in
the widest possible audiences, their model
was successful for their Northwestern
community. Here, they share what they’ve
learned from the experience.
Taking art far beyond the gallery
doors and urban centers, Athabascan,
Métis, and other Subarctic artists collab-
orated to revive “Tapis: Blankets in
Celebration of the Sled Dog,” as Michole
Eldred (Catawba/Eastern Cherokee)
relates in her feature article. Their efforts
culminated in the ceremonial dog team
of the Yukon Quest wearing elaborately
beaded, embroidered, and embellished
blankets at the lead of the dogsled race.
This art form honors the first pack animal
of the Americas, strengthening bonds
between the species.
Film and video may very well be
the salient cultural expression of our
current times. In “Roma: Cleo's Story
and Indigenous Depictions in Mexican
Cinema,” Jeannette Martinez explores
how cinema, straddling the world of art
and popular culture, has changed along
with Mexico’s national relationships
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to its Indigenous peoples. Unlike its
neighboring country, Mexico integrated
its pre-Columbian past and Indigenous
peoples into the folds of national percep-
tion, and yet, as Martinez explains, this
has previously been based on patronizing
stereotypes. She finds hope in the recent
inclusion of Indigenous actresses and
Indigenous language in Alfonso Cuarón’s
Oscar-winning film, Roma (2019).
In “Alaska Native Basketry: Diversity
in the Far North,” Bryn Barabas Potter
introduces us to basket-making practices
in some of the most remote stretches of
land and sea in North America. These
basket makers renew their connections
with the natural world, its plants, animals,
and other beings, creating sculptures that
hold our hopes for survival and a better
future for us all.
Inclusion means recognizing
different perspectives—perhaps seemingly
conflicting on the surface, but pointing to
larger, broader truths. Indigenous artists
in our profiles, reviews, and features use
wildly different tactics and messages to
resonate with different audiences. Just as
there is no one way to talk, walk, or dance,
there is no one way to create art.
—America Meredith (Cherokee Nation)