Impressions in Clay: Journey to the 2014 Gathering of Indigenous Visual Artists of the Pacific Rim

These three blog posts serve as a lovely reminder of my trip in January of 2014 to Ngapuhi in Kaikohe, New Zealand to participate in a gathering of amazing indigenous artists called "Kokiri Putahi".

Jewelry & Prints For Sale @ Washington State History Museum Gift Shop

Ceramic jewelry, including the above-pictured styles, as well as my linocut prints, are now available for sale at the Washington State History Museum Gift Shop! The Museum is located at:

1911 Pacific Avenue

Tacoma, WA 98402

 Phone:(253)798- 5895

Crude Repression

Crude Repression

Ceramic, glaze

8” x 7” x 7”

2014

Many voices all over the world call out to protect the earth’s ecosystems from exploitation by the oil industry, and are suppressed.

Created at :Kokiri Putahi: 7th Gathering of International Indigenous Visual Artists in Kaikohe, New Zealand in January 2014. Exhibited at "In the Spirit: Contemporary Native Art Show," May - August, 2014 at the Washington State History Museum.

Betrayal

Betrayal

Clay, glaze, gourd, acrylic

2014

The two-faced nature of betrayal is poisonous. Sucked in by beauty and charm, you may become prey to the nature of the viper.

This piece will be shown at the Ngapuhi Festival in Kaihoke, New Zealand Aotearoa January 25-26, 2014

10 years later, "Despair of Humanity: Iraq War"

Despair of Humanity: Iraq War

Colored Pencil

13" x 18"

2007

It's been ten years since the Iraq War began. It's terrible legacy will impact survivors for generations to come. I made this piece to show the faces of war. The media played a role in legitimizing the Iraq war, by telling lies and using distorted facts to champion the war and militarism in general. Media showed a sanitized version, not the actual affects of war - the human cost - so  I wanted to make an image that showed a reality of this war. I researched and found many images, mostly on independent and foreign news websites. The work is a product of my own outrage, fear and anger, since I, and many in my community, actively organized and demonstrated against the war, and the so-called war on terror.

Here is Arundhati Roy speaking on the war, reported by Democracy Now two days ago:

The use of depleted uranium has been devastating and genocidal. Democracy Now, one of best independent news sources, just did a piece on the epidemic of birth defects from the U.S. military's use of depleted uranium in Fallujah, Iraq, which is a weapon that is supposed to be banned from use. Reporter Dahr Jamail explains the situation - please be aware that the images in the video are disturbing, but what they depict is real, and has been paid for with U.S. tax dollars. People should know about this - since, even in some small way, we are all complicit.

Democracy Now: Ten Years Later, U.S. Has Left Iraq with Mass Displacement & Epidemic of Birth Defects, Cancers, interview with Dahr Jamail 

I just read  and want to share an open letter written by a soldier who fought in the Iraq war to then-president Bush and then-vice president Cheney that has been recently published. Tomas Young's "Last Letter," is an extremely powerful statement. While, I do not support the U.S. attacking Afghanistan, or our current occupation there, this man's perspective is very important:

Last Letter by Tomas Young

Freshly Fired Faces

A fresh batch of kiln fired faces ready for use! Made with X-tra White and Terracotta, fired to cone 04. There is a small bit of damage on the nose of the largest terracotta face. Projects are in the works...

Self-Decolonization: Winter of Our Internment

16" x 20"

Acrylic on canvas

2010

Winter of Our Internment depicts the prison camp on Pike Island - located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers in what is today known as the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The families rounded up after the Dakota uprising of 1862 were forced to spend the winter within this open air prison. The loss of life from hunger and sickness was immense, and the survivors were exploited in every way. Any words I have for this atrocity seem incapable of describing the impacts for these ancestors and for all the generations to follow...

This work is a part of the "Self: Decolonization" series in which I reflect upon my true history, with the purpose of seeking justice for my ancestors, my elders, my generation, future generations and myself. I wanted to express this event in a significant way, so I chose to paint it as a Winter Count.

A Winter Count is a great buffalo hide that holds the history of the tribe. Each winter, the year's most significant, defining event is painted on the hide. After many years, the images wind in a spiral, filling the entire robe. The winter of 1863 deserves its own hide as a Winter Count, since for every year after, we have felt the effects of genocide and continued colonialism that can be traced to that winter.

Winter of Our Internment was auctioned to raise money for the Native Student Alliance powwow at Evergreen State College in May, 2012

face sketched in acrylic

This image is a initial sketch of the face appearing in a new 12"x16" acrylic painting entitled, Feel My Wrath. The work will be exhibited at the Washington State University Women's Resource Center annual exhibition "Reinterpreting Reality" in March of 2013 to commemorate National Women's History Month.

Cruel and Inhuman Shadowbox

Cruel and Inhuman Shadowbox, photographed by Richard Nicol

Fired Terracotta, Hemp, Copper, Wood

6.5" x 8.5" x 8"

2007

In this piece, the human impact of oppression surrounding victims and survivors of violence are explored. Interpretations engage the viewer in a visual communication through stimulating emotions. This work demonstrates the horror of physical and psychological torture. It depicts a soul trapped in a stupor, unable to move from generations of trauma and abuse, on display and void of a connection to humanity, as if functioning in normality. I seek to provide a vessel through which these emotions can be collectively experienced, for acknowledging them is a first step in coping with them.

Exhibited at:

"Modern Day Warriors: Empowering the Young Voices of Native America"
Native American Rights Fund Juried Art Auction in November, 2007

"In the Spirit: Contemporary Northwest Native Arts" Exhibit at the Washington State History Museum, 2007

"Just Us: Engendering Justice," Office of Sexual Assault Prevention Exhibit
at the Evergreen State College, 2011

Published in:

Red Ink Magazine Vol. 13 No. 2, 2007

Unthinkable

Unthinkable

pastel

9" x 12"

Unthinkable is a quick sketch I did today, a self-portrait.

Grey Cloud Woman Bringing Rain

Mixed Media: gourd, ceramic, acrylic, plaster

13”h x 10”w x 10”d

Grey Cloud Woman, Mahpiyahotawin, brings life from delicate droplets. She transcends elemental phases to deliver the heavens to earth. Gracefully traversing a current of ocean air, Mahpiyahotawin gives her essence freely. Her mesmerizing, floating, flowing nature is a constant comfort. Depicted on the curves of a gourd, she shifts, moves her garment, and rain shimmers down. With the prolonged heat of summer, or the insatiable thirst of drought, I long for a cool shower over the dry land. With this piece, I honor Grey Cloud Woman, and call to her, asking her to bring the healing rain home.

rear detail

This work is available for auction to benefit the Potlatch Fund, can can be seen here.

A Hidden History of Olympia

Prayer for Tsus-sy-uch

Colored Pencil on Paper
2012
13" x 18"

This year, the Canoe families Paddle to Squaxin on the Salish Sea to land at Steh-Chass, also known as Olympia. Prayer for Tsus-sy-uch draws attention to a hidden history that should be remembered about Olympia. The canoes will travel past Butler Cove just before landing. The cove is named after John Butler, who settled 300 acres that is now a private golf course. The golf course is near where I live – I often take walks down to the beach, which I find to be a sacred space. In this space, I recall an incident that I learned about through a visit to the Squaxin Island Museum.

In 1854, a young Tsimshian and Tlingit man of nobility, called Tsus-sy-uch, journeyed with his crew by canoe from his homeland up North to earn money in this area. They spent time around Fort Nisqually, and then were hired by Butler to clear his property. Tsus-sy-uch and his crew labored hard, but when payment was due, were denied what they had been promised. Tsus-sy-uch was shot during the dispute, in a killing ordered by Butler and committed by Butler’s overseer. Tsus-sy-uch’s crew made their case to various Washington Territory authorities, but neither guilty man was ever brought to justice – instead, the cove was eventually named after Butler.

The crime made it transparent to the indigenous people of this region that the settlers of this area did not see them as equals, but as expendable. It set off tensions which, alongside the many crimes by settlers against tribal people, led to the Indian Wars and further genocide. The hidden history of the killing of Tsus-sy-uch – which remains deliberately obscured by a name – is reflective of the violence used to settle this continent.

Names have power. The movement to reclaim Native spaces through re-naming has gained ground regionally – most notably through the former Puget Sound returning to its ancestral name, Salish Sea, and other instances such as Bushoowah-ahlee Point at Evergreen State College. The designation of the place known as Butler Cove could be changed to reflect and honor Tsus-sy-uch rather than reward his killer’s legacy. 

Child's Death Mask: Collateral Damage

Child's Death Mask: Collateral Damage

Flame Maple and Pearls
2007
8" x 9" x 6"

In a world ruled by militarism, let me bring a voice to the silenced. Remember this child, killed for no reason other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or of the wrong race, culture or religion. This child is timeless, could be from Iraq or Afghanistan, or maybe from Colombia, El Salvador or Guatemala. This child could be from Palestine, Chechnya, Vietnam or Indonesia. This child could be from Turtle Island during the conquest that created the United States. I see no difference because the results are the same. Think on this child, who will never grow to fulfill their life's purpose.

This work was chosen as cover art by my dear friend and fellow Human Rights activist Larry Ebersole's volume of poems called, "mural poems: human rights and anti-war poems." Unfortunately, the book is now out of print. But, before he passed into the next world, the legendary Howard Zinn offered a shining review of Larry's work. Click on the image above to read it.



"Child's Death Mask: Collateral Damage" was my first work, alongside a colored pencil drawing called, "Despair of Humanity: Iraq War," to be juried into the exhibition "In the Spirit: Contemporary Northwest Native Arts." The art show is an annual collaboration between the Longhouse Education and Cultural Center and the Washington State History Museum. The work was also published in Red Ink Magazine, Vol. 13 No. 2 in Fall of 2007.


As a Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota, I am proud to voice a dissenting view on militarism. I see many connections to the wars and occupations being waged around the world to the genocide of indigenous people of this continent. I see many similarities between current resistance struggles and the struggles of our people for self-determination. The warrior spirit for me means that I must think from myself, from my heart, and be willing to act and to give my life, and my life's purpose for the values that I hold dear. I hold the warriors who have been exploited by those who seek only to empower and enrich themselves in my heart and mind.


As I work to decolonize my mind, I must rethink, and re-evaluate what I have been taught. I must replace what comes from being colonized and assimilated with indigenous values at the core of my being. Through this process, I shed tears for those children whose lives have been cut short, the innocent and gentle who have met a violent end for no reason.

Blood Quantum Countdown

Blood Quantum Countdown    

Ceramic, acrylic on canvas, plaster, silver, clock parts

2011

24” x 24” 

Using two different varieties of ceramic clay and a working clock, I explore the Western-imposed concept of blood quantum upon indigenous identity. Like the Western construct of time which was imposed through colonization, blood quantum has imprinted itself upon our collective psyche. Using the image of lightning, which instantly attracts the attention of all who see it flash, I seek to draw attention to the dangers of basing our identity upon racist instruments.

Blood quantum originated during a historical period of the U.S. when Native Americans were viewed as a vanishing race. Today, it enjoys widespread use by tribal and federal governments as a legitimate method of determining whether a person can be considered an American Indian. This piece warns that continuing its use inevitably leads to a countdown to our extinction. 

Faces are depicted as pie charts to show the nonsensical nature of using this race-based method for quantifying Nativeness. Nobody looks like a pie chart. Our survival as a people is based upon a whole spectrum of qualifying factors, from lineal descent to connection to our tribal communities, to protecting, preserving and revitalizing our tribal cultures. It’s time to reassess the viability of the blood quantum system.

By Erin Genia (Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate)

Exhibited @ the "In the Spirit: Contemporary Northwest Native Arts" show at the Washington State History Museum in 2011. Won Pendleton Prize (People's Choice runner up). It has also shown at the Wing Luke Museum in the exhibition entitled "Under my Skin: Artists Explore race in the 20th Century," in 2013. View this video response to the piece:

Art historian and critic Susan Noyes Platt wrote about the piece here, stating "A ceramic work by Native artist Erin Genia charts the dilution of racial color as though on a clock face with faces losing their color as you progress around the clock." 

The piece showed at "Native Now: Contemporary Art of Today's Native American Artists" at the Duhesa Gallery at Colorado State University from Fall 2014 - Spring 2015.

The work will appeared at the Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner, Washington from October 2015 - January 2016 in "Not Vanishing: Contemporary Expressions in Indigenous Art, 1977-2015," the exhibition, which is being curated by Gail Tremblay, (MicMac/ Onandaga) and Miles Miller (Yakama) will feature 44 artists from Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, and British Columbia whose work has been important to the Contemporary Native American Art Movement. Platt revied the show and said this of the piece's inclusion, "Erin Genia’s  Blood Quantum Countdown affiliates with conceptual art as it poignantly points to why these artists so urgently sustain their cultural heritage in the midst of their immersion in the contemporary world." "Not Vanishing" also traveled to Heritage University and the Missoula Art Museum where it will be up until December 2016. I traveled to the show's opening at MAM and gave an artist's talk about the concepts raised by the piece.

Self-Decolonization: On the Dakota Uprising

Self-Decolonization: On the Dakota Uprising

Terracotta, plaster, acrylic, cedar, maps

2010

24” x 21”

This piece is a symbolic attack on an icon of imperialism—Abraham Lincoln, who presided over the largest mass execution in United States history—of 38 Dakota men who took part in the 1862 Dakota Uprising. It is a window into the past that revisits a hidden history of how this country came to be what it is and revises landscapes to reflect our ever-present ancestors. I am a descendant of survivors of genocide, ethnic cleansing, expulsion, relocation, and internment. My ancestors have asked me to revisit this painful past because there is healing that needs to be done and restitution that needs to be made to the Dakota people for the diaspora that was created when we were expelled from our place of origin and forbidden to return. Here, I explore the concept of blood money and subvert the ideals of American mythology while asking myself, “Who are my heroes?” This work is part of a series about Self-Decolonization. The act of creating works for this series is a potent vehicle for decolonizing my own mind and bringing sanity to my life. In learning the truth about my history and trying to make sense of my world, I seek to shed values that have been imposed on me and reclaim those that are my birthright.

Exhibited @
Native Now: Contemporary Arts of Today's Native American Artists, Duhesa Art Gallery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, 2014-2015

In the Spirit: Contemporary Northwest Native Arts Exhibit Washington State History Museum, Tacoma, Washington 2010 
B.E.S.T. of First Nations Blue Horse Gallery, Bellingham, Washington 2010