Valentine origin prints story

Years ago when I was a bright eyed artist starting out I had the great fortune to befriend Bruce Cook III who I’ve talked about many times over the years that introduced me to my first mentor Steve Brown. I was just learning about serigraphy. I had made a single print to my name cutting color separation films in the basement of Bruce’s house in Tacoma when he introduced me to a local screenprinter James Bender. James had a business that was mostly apparel and some art posters for local bands but his living space and work place were located not far from where my band had a space to record in the former Heidelburg brewery which was a fairly vacant building at the time.

James’ studio was just across from there and I got to know him well and at that time photoshop was in it’s early stages. Somehow Bruce, James and myself at the time decided to create a valentine print. We set out to Daniel Smith to secure paper and a day later of cutting films we produced valentines. Given I was broke at the time I couldn’t afford to buy much paper but I was so proud to see my work produced in quantity that I could give to my Grandmother, my mother and my aunties and of course a few crushes then but that was all I could give. It was a great sentiment and it made me happy to work with a couple artists who wanted to make art for sake of making art to share with people.

The first design was elementary so much so that I don’t share it in my own posts here but it was simply based on a human figure holding a heart within the iconic motif of a spindle whorl.

The following year we revisited the concept and I again being a ‘starving artist’ didn’t have much in way of money but I wanted to up the quality of paper stock and reduced the size of the print to somewhere around 14” square. James’ wife helped me name the piece “On Tenterhooks” and it was a great lesson in how to title work and the philosophy behind what the work means to both myself and the viewer or in that case the recipient.

On Tenterhooks

Years passed after and we produced some works not as prints on paper but various items but the sentiment was there. After photoshop and the digital process picked up in the capacity to produce fine art prints my work migrated in that direction. The most recent of that was a revisiting of the idea as I wanted it to be in my original concept that was titled “My Light in the Darkness”

My Light in the Darkness

There were years in between the followed lots of experimentation of what I could say with the heart as an icon and utilize my best resources looking at it as a graphic as well as a story each year.

For those who follow my work it is well known that my grandmother had been a source of inspiration and supported my work emotionally and financially when things weren’t so great. All artists endure this to some degree as any independent or ‘freelancer’ which I’ve always hated the term for but it is a reality that ideas are hard to turn over day by day and make new and feel good about the work one creates.

When I designed My Light in the Darkness it was quite specific to know that in all the creatives I’ve had contact with the struggle at times with isolation because making art calls for one to refine concepts alone and spend a lot of time making the creations whether a weaving or sculpture or painting in solitude. Don’t get me wrong for my peers I can relate to this as a way of getting paid to meditate because after all a lot of people who retire look to paint or create as a way to find peace and that does exist in working in the moment.

This past year I realized how much I repressed things I couldn’t any longer and to embrace what some call the ‘shadow’ in terms of psychology. That within us is a darkness that if repressed eats away at you. To make peace with this I believe it’s necessary to give them room to breathe as it were. It is a matter of understanding that we can’t please everyone all the time and that failure is part of a journey we have to embark on regardless of occupation, class or sex. It is inevitable for us all.

Whether you’ve been stood up for a date waiting at a table painfully. Punched in the face at a bar for mistakingly think you could make friends and be coy, or simply having someone break your heart. It is the human experience that there is not love without pain romantic or platonic. Sometimes it mends and sometimes it doesn’t.

This year I wanted to acknowledge the realization with a triptych catching up on although late as it is “Black Swan”. I was moved by the movie because it like Whiplash showcased a sacrifice that is made to achieve a perceived greatness and need for validation. Something that is ever more powerful in this time of writing. I didn’t want to paint a pretty picture this year or ‘print’ one but share an expression that comes from a side we can all relate to but not want to hang on the walls for all to see but at least understand.

So I created Black Swan and the Boy Who Cried Wolf as a gesture. Individually they are named “the Hit”, “the Revelation” and “the Besides”. Together they tell a story. The color palette was also inspired from cinematography from Euphoria as well as it’s tragic aesthetic. It is to say that beauty can exist in tragedy and it is what we learn from it that calls us to create more and live more and try to love more.

The Hit

the Revelation

the Besides

In all we want a hit like something that makes us feel good a song that picks you up and moves you, motivates you and puts a smile on your face even when you are down holding your heart up as a shield. The Revelation comes when the honeymoon passes. The Besides calls to the old days of tapes and records, the things you took for granted whether a relationship survives or not. You come out the other side whether you’d like to admit it or not the arrow struck you because you called for it and you make peace knowing that regardless of the outcome if it was a hit or a flop you had to hear it out. You may have a heart in your hand that is your own or feel you’ve gained one that you made a sacrifice for but regardless you’ve made a commitment to journey into something that was uncertain.

Positive and Negative: the Comedian and Transformer

When I was 12 years old I watched Eddie Murphy RAW with my family. It was over my head of course at that age. I should say hey it’s been a while since I posted and all that but ok let’s get that outta there way. Done. I watched Joker again now that it’s been out on digital format with time to think about it for a day.

I was trying to figure out why I was compelled to make a painting about a villain who I don’t feel I relate to but then it got me thinking. I was thinking of a lot of things because it’s a powerful film overall. I need to preface this explanation about Tsa-qwa-supp a Nuu-chah-nulth artist who influenced my work along with George David and Beau Dick. There was an essay years ago about Tsa-qwa-supp titled “Snakes and Clowns”. It basically stated that his motivations for his work stemmed from being laughable as a culture and people and that I can related to as that motivated me. I recall being told by so many that Coast Salish people and specifically my tribe, Puyallup had no art and didn’t have totem poles which is true. But that lit a fire within to understand what I could about my past and prove otherwise.

George had been a great teacher, patient and insightful. He was moved by this idea of painting from emotion after meditation and wanted to do that at some point in life. To my knowledge he never did but his works forever influenced my appreciation for philosophical integrity. Beau was a master of making powerful work and wasn’t afraid to portray figures in their darkest and intimidating appearances.

I head all the fear based in what this Joker movie was going to be and how it was going to be awful and that it was about incel culture. I was skeptical because after Joel  Schumacher’s take on Batman I was done and I regret never seeing Batman Begins in theater. So what risk is it to see a movie so I went despite the hype knowing that there were people there to protect us.

That said the movie fired up my artist brain.

It made realize this is a game changer for one simple reason. We are all want to see ourselves as the hero of our own stories but we are villains. Joker intentionally goes too far as comedians have to do to know the limit and be trouble makers. The way one envies a rebel but knows you would never be that person because you can’t really see those struggles and wouldn’t truly want to know them.

In Coast Salish culture we have Dakwibał the Changer/Transformer who was born of a woman of earth and a star being. He is noted for changing things to be less harmful to the human race for example reducing the power of the serpents to snakes. In essence silencing the comedian.

I say this because I think of the segment where Arthur Fleck bombs horribly on stage from the opening scene of his act. This is powerful because we have all been there in one form or another pushed into a spotlight where you make a fool of yourself. It made me think of strong and motivational words from comedian Dave Chappelle talking about bombing on stage at the Apollo in front of his family and friends, realizing if this is bad as it get’s ok I’ll survive.

It also reminded me that despite everyone hating on this movie of a Chris Rock bit where he asked the audience about the Spice Girls and it was quiet. He pointed out how they sold millions of albums, which I bought one and can admit, “nobody in this room of a thousand plus people bought that album”?

I’m not plugging my painting as much as I am explaining where it is coming from because there are times where art without explanation goes into an interpretation. I think of some of the work that is misunderstood and I have judged things on aesthetic alone before thinking ‘what the hell is this’, although I’m not saving up money to buy a banana taped to a wall anytime soon.

I thought of a piece that was at the Museum of Glass years ago by Mexican artists, the De La Torre Brothers who had a piece of an Armedillo on a crucafix with tire tread over his belly. I thought, this is ridiculous but leaned in to read the explanation that is was a piece about natures sacrifice for highway you could get to work on. That idea sparked back up when I thought about the trash building up in Gotham and the waste we make and how we disregard those without resources.

In the ending SPOILER

When Arthur kills his perceived hero it is because he has nothing left and that is the essence of Joker and what is the most frightening about him. What made Heath Ledger and Chris Nolan’s take on his character is captured in the Joker stand alone because the Joker is one with nothing left to lose and believes chaos is his essence to play a role where he failed as a comedian. He laughs to himself in the end because as Batman Begins ended with a teaser of the Joker it is played in reverse. In the interview that Mike Meyers gave on inside the actors studio years ago he talked about the power of his father telling him “every villain is the hero of their own story”. The Star Wars exploration of that with Darth Vadar tried to back story that with mixed reviews and I’m still scratching my head about it.

He is truly mad and transformed as he has the belief he is bound to seek chaos as his calling and believes he gives rise to a true adversary in Batman. It is on the work of that narrative that Joker was able to capture an audience. It reminds me how we can’t escape a perception of villains like the narrative of cowboys and Indians is part of our lexicon. It made me recall a saying an arts director shared with me ‘good art isn’t going to match your couch or living room’ something along those lines but I hope you understand the gist.

Equally so this reminded me of how I can love both Megamind and Joker at the same time, pop music and metal and not judge myself.

How do you make art?

It's a question I hear often, "how do you make art"? or "what is your process"?. It's a complex idea to which I've never had much of an answer but for good reason I think. I work in different mediums and that aside even, ideas come from, well, who knows where really. As a child I used to stare at wood grain while bored at different places and see images of faces. In my youth I'd spend hours creating watercolor paintings on the back of old 3x5 postcards of a small stream I fell in where I remembered seeing Mount Ranier (Takopid) in my view with big blades of grass on either side of it. That said, in the art form I practice there is an approach and discipline that defines it. When veered off from it is understood visually.

It's been a long time since I've thought about it but the concept of 'the curse of knowledge' comes to mind. It's the point at which you've done something so long that it's nearly impossible to explain how you got to where you are with the knowledge you've acquired. It's not out of ego to state this but as art goes there is a point that one takes ones own path.

I'm forever grateful to my family and mainly my grandmother who saw that I wasn't likely to become a lawyer or doctor. I was fortunate to have the support to embrace my gears towards music and art. I think my real growth came from the resistance of people doubting me heavily in my venture to understand Coast Salish art really. At the time I was learning only a handful of artists were making works inspired by the historical pieces which are few in comparison to some other tribes. It was there that I found inspiration to explore that small segment and see what could be brought back to our people of today.

Long story short, the Northwest Coast is more than totem poles which by the way cannot be read as hieroglyphs as have been published. Stories are as complex as you are willing to look when it comes to anything.

It's been on my mind lately how it is I create the things that I do because I don't want to fall into a pattern which has been a large critique about Northwest Coast Native art in general. There are many tribes along the water and interior all with unique stories to tell orally and visually.

I have great admiration for Greg Colfax who was an early mentor after my first, Steve Brown. He was the first artist to make me think about the deeper meaning of characters. Today people want to reduce iconography into icons, a consumable and digestible understanding. Eagle is honor, Bear is strength. What is overlooked is the depth of each tribe, each family and what those things mean, namely when it comes to history of tribal people, the cress and stories are individual and within them all a deeper story.

For me tonight I've been struggling to design a blue jay within a paddle. I originally thought, I can just design a profile of the face and make a wing, maybe the tail feathers or the feet. I erased so much over a day I had to start a new sheet template. I paced the room, listened to some music took several breaks and sat back at the design table.

I had the basic outline and head of the blue jay with some minor modifications with an eraser. Somehow, somewhere in letting go I started to think of what Kai Kai (Bluejay) means as a being from our people. He was the rescuer of the songs. Long ago the sky was low and people were hitting their heads and worked together to push it back up which is a story of it's own. But when the sky was raised somehow the bird people were separated from their songs. The bird people gathered and held a contest that whomever could retrieve the songs would be the winner and choose where the songs belong. In somewhat predictable fashion it starts with the underdogs, the smaller birds all the way up to Eagle who fails in his attempt. The Kai Kai stood up determined and the people laughed at him pointing out how they went through the ranks of flight power already. So he asked what they had to lose by him trying and Eagle didn't want to be shown up by his smaller stature so he told him they would go at the same time. They flew up and Kai Kai made it nearly as high as Eagle but just at that point he jumped on his head and at Eagles frustration still climbing he pushed off his momentum to seize the songs.

It's a story that tells us to value effort, and not underestimate the power of the underestimated and the power of what can be achieved when working together.

The break through I had personally in my design struggle was to think about Kai Kai as an individual. Perhaps the song was a love song he treasured of his own for his mate. Maybe he had lost a bet with teti ed (Hummingbird) or maybe he'd been scorn by Eagle and had something to prove. Regardless, songs are important to us all and in that context, Kai Kai had his own song, whatever it might be it was his. When all was done, he gave the songs to the smaller birds who have the more pleasant of them to our ears today. 

I decided to venture into that moment where Kai Kai found his own song amongst the stars and the other bird songs in that design. It is in itself in what western culture would deem "piggy-backing" on. All the same with all that explanation it's only one painting and one idea among many and it's by far not a process but what comes from the need to take time for a stillness and receive those ideas.

When Tribal Became a Four Letter Word

It's puzzled me for years to not understand how people didn't see the world as I did until I realized I am a part of an ethnic group that despite living in the land of my ancestors feels a stranger more often than not. I suppose my first experience of this came in fourth grade when I met my first 'white' friend who became my long time friend who I was even best man for in his wedding no so long ago. On the elementary playground looking for something to do I decided to take a stab at joining a basketball game. After all I was at Native basketball tournaments all the time on reservations. I should point out at this juncture that although I lived on a reservation and my school was on tribal land it was a public school and I was one of maybe four kids in a modest sized school district comprised of mostly rural kids in what was mostly farm land. 

I approached the group some others lined up to be picked for a team. I'll never forget a kid who would be classified as a stereotypical looking bully form an Adam Sandler movie stand as one of the team captains choosing. Looking back in my memory it seemed more like he was choosing for each side even though it's highly doubtful but that's how it felt. I should also mention I was an elevation challenged child, skinny at that. What stood out from this however is the reason I wasn't picked from the mix to be even teams and I'll never forget what followed. 

"I'm not picking him" he said to everyone even tho I was last.

"why not"? on of the kids asked.

"Because he's an Indian". Again I should point out how this was a predominantly white school. Others were frustrated because recess is a time limited activity so each second is precious time, especially in youth where time is eternity. I was thrown back for realizing for the first time that I wasn't perceived as everyone else but something different. It wasn't that I was short or skinny it was that I was a Native American.

"Screw that man" came from the boy who shoved him in front to challenge the sturdy framed bully who stood tallest of the group. The shove came from one his height but maybe even 1/3 less his mass, tall but skinny for our age group.

"Let's just play" he said, a fight broke out and we never got to play that day but it gave me my first long time friend. I eventually played with them all but with the awareness that I was different from that moment forward.

Another example stemming on a new level of that very experience came on the Monday where on the same playground one of the boys asked "what did you guys do this weekend"? and I was first to reply "I went to a pow wow with my grandma and grandpa"

"what. no no no." the boy replied without missing a beat "pow wow's are for Indian chiefs ONLY, my dad told me so"

I had to ask although be it confused "are you and Indian"?

"No" he replied "but you guys know right that's how it is"? looking to the group who I had been accepted as one of. And to my great surprise, they all nodded their heads in agreement.

I share this as the intro to this topic as a display of taking sides or playing on a team. In my youth and throughout my life I have had the Native American experience first hand, not in some version of watching "Dances with Wolves" or "Avatar" and before that "Little Big Man". I live as a Native American in a time that exists outside the cowboy western complex.  My life consisted of social responsibilities that I was raised in relating to ceremony and protocol. By the age of 11 I'd attended many funeral services and even if not in person, knew the people who passed in some way as members of my tribal community. I learned the practice of our community roles in those things, the cooks who prepared the food, the fisherman who caught the food, or the hunters who provided the elk, the weavers and artists who made works to gift to witnesses of the community. The practice of potlatching that I grew up with as a sense of belonging. The ceremony that tied us to other tribes and tribal communities. 

Taking long car trips with my family to honor the passing of someone important to another tribe was a practice that I grew up with as a sense of what I understood as a foundation. I never thought of this as foreign because it is a practice and tradition that long stretches before the word America itself.

Flash forward many years forward becoming a father myself and seeing what the present day looks like I've arrived at a new basketball court. One without a bully but an equally powerful authoritarian idea that shapes a new playground. One who uses the very word tribe and tribal in condemnation for a game where the goal seems to be to win favor of opinion more than anything. The game of who is right and who is wrong and not the players involved. Politics are not foreign to myself nor many Native Americans. My grandfather was a member of our tribal council throughout my childhood. His shared some fairly complex ideas with me as a child what I see now as his way of his sense of urgency to entrust me with such knowledge. At the age of 10 I'd already known a lot of struggle that affected our community as 'tribal' people.

A key example is the act of fishing. A long pass time act one might think of as what it is to be American. Although my uncles and grandfather fished on the river of our family property along our tribes river, I didn't go very often. I wondered about this when I would hear other kids at school talk about fishing with their fathers. Until one day I wanted to go on the boat with my dad and my uncle, standing at the side of the river bank with my grandfather. My grandfather started cursing and I just remember him say "Not again, dammit". I didn't understand as he told me to get in his truck. I just remember a lot of yelling and confrontation with white men on the lower bank of the trees where I couldn't see them.

On that car ride back up to the family property. I was told about the time he'd hoped we were passed. I was educated on that car ride about being shot at, having our nets seized and our boats stolen or damaged because we were Native American but in his words "Savage". 

"That's what they call us grandson" he muttered with clenched hands at the wheel "It drives me mad no matter how much we work at this."

I listened to him and listened on. If you asked me though now I wouldn't be able to tell you all the details but it kept me from going out there again for years. He was my hero and still is like a lot of grandkids who grow up close to their grandparents which to be honest is probably just as rare as being an Indian in a public school at that time. My understanding of tribe came from a closeness of family and extension of my families relations and tribal ties.

Back to the present day. I've been at many services and travelled to many tribal reservations to visit and participate in ceremony. Perhaps what sparked this blog post alone was that passing of my friend who was a diver and great example of a single father upholding culture pass early in his life. I was moved at his service by the number of tribes from other nations come to attend. I had seen larger attendance to services before but something struck me there. I loved him dearly as a friend and something in me regretted never being able to tell him although we went to the same high school how I was proud to have him as a member of my tribe. I knew him as selfless and one to really extend himself in his efforts to be available to others in what he could offer as a fisherman or singer to families who had lost someone in their community.

To me that is what I hear when I hear the words 'tribal'. So today when the culture climate of the larger population talks about polarization and how we've become 'tribal'. I am again that confused child wondering why the larger group can't play the game and just call it 'teams' because that is what it still is to me. A game of opposition where the teams are at odds to win something. Native people and to be clear "Tribes" are fighting for something that is clear, to protect lands and our environment that has been an underlying value of our way of life that has become known as a cultural practice. It's only in a political climate that I see the divide happen as we veer from our very 'tribalism'.

I am but an artist sharing thoughts reflecting in a sea of mass media but it's something that has been on my mind as an avid listener of podcasts and political news thinking of my grandfather and at a larger scale, my tribal community who is largely marginalized on the sidelines at others fight for something that isn't clear to me while the recess bell is short from going off. Are we not looking at the clock and enjoying this game of life or are we consumed by who is right?

Inktober 2017

 Looking back on October and what I learned from the decision to participate in #inktober2017 at least the Northwest Coast Native edition anyway. Browsing instagram the end of November I came across a post from an artist that I follow. I was intruiged as she reposted an inktober challenge list. For those of you unfamiliar with inktober it's a month various groups largely, Illustrators participate referencing a daily assignment for the day. In this variation the days included subjects that are particular to Northern Northwest Coast Native style art. There are regions that have distinguished characteristics and from an academic view it's sort of simplified that way. Most groups make use of the ovoid and u form shapes that comprise what has largely become known as 'formline' art. This is particular to regions of Southeast Alaska yes, northern style in southeast it can be confusing but stay with me.

When I started out learning Native art despite growing up in a Native community emmersed in my culture I was unaware of the art style that had been largely forgotten where I come from in Southern Puget Sound. I assumed that totem poles and all the artifacts in the local museums were characteristic of my tribe but they weren't. In fact the tribes who practice the art form that is most prolific in western Washington would raid our villages in pre-contact times. That said I learned this style as it was most recognized and it's what people in the art collector world wanted so to make a long story short I spent much time among Northern artists who lived in the Seattle area and learned how that art relates to their culture and how it functions as not just art but an expression of wealth and cultural knowledge that surpasses monetary value but insues a sense of pride.

Different kind of animal day 23

There are several books on the subject of the formline art tradition but are focused on the academic view and don't tend to examine the arts functioning purpose. It's to preserve history and lineage that tie far back as a written history in many ways. I have learned this style and practice it in a way one would write in another language knowing it's not my first language but one I can respect and allows me a window into a way fellow Native people view the world uniquely. The work I do in this style now are not made for sale more than they are design exercises to keep myself 'sharp'. 

So back to the inktober subject. After buying an iPad pro 10.5 model with an apple pencil I was excited about hand drawn art, even if digital the tool set is fun to explore. This challenge gave me a spark of inspiration to challenge myself with ink and paper which I hadn't done in years so I dove right in. The first week was mostly Northern element forms so I followed that as the guide to adhere to the list. After the second week however I shifted to my Coast Salish roots. Along the way I used various papers and pens developing a preference for ones that felt good to me. Which brings me to one major draw back about using the iPad and apple pencil is  this, as an artist we develop sensitivity to feel from pens, brushes papers etc. Those feelings all go out the window when using two hard surfaces and it takes some getting used to. So needless to say I was happy to jump back in to using paper and pen, brush pens in particular that have flexibility to them with a feel of sweeping curves back and forth.

Favorite animal day 24

The challenge gave me just that, when I woke in the morning I would think of how I was going to tackle the subject of the day. As crazy as it sounds it is often more challenging to have some open ended subjects such as 'favorite animal' or 'different kind of animal'. I looked ahead on these when browsing the list and decided I wanted to make an impression with those paying attention to the Instagram feed and because I follow an account of a Japanese woman who owns three meerkats I made that one of the challenges personally. It's this kind of thing that makes making art fun again. The question of whether you think you can pull off something that's outside of the norm. Equally so my animal of choice, no, not my 'totem' as there's no such thing in the Disney or new age sense. I've designed many wolves before but I wanted the day of my favorite animal to be something new as well so I went with a crawling wolf. White on a black background.

Hand(s) day 7

I wanted to be sure to keep the challenge not so predictable but also keep to the list. For example the day of hand(s) I decided to make 'director hands'. A fun play on modern views that can be expressed with an ancient art tradition.

Crow Sisters I (from design in a circle)

From these excercises I ended up developing two pieces that have made their way into fully committed prints in my portfolio as well as a commission piece. The day of 'design in a circle' I decided to use the iPad pro as my starting point and use the mirror feature that is really useful in the Autodesk Sketchbook Pro toolbox. 

In all it was a good experience and for any fellow artists who may be facing a blank page doing these design challenges are a good way to kickstart your imagination. What was most rewarding in it was to know I was doing the illustrations, not for commissions or competition but to challenge myself daily for that month. I definitely look forward to next year and may jump in to the larger challenge posted on forums using the unique Coast Salish style as my approach but stick to the list online. We'll see. Happy illustration my fellow artists, and to close out, my final day post 'anything you want' which ended up being a Nuu-chah-nulth serpent.

Anything you want day 31 Nuu-chah-nulth serpent

Uncontroversial Monuments

With today's political climate at high tension I hope to add some glimmer of hope for good news. It's been a couple years in the making now and I am now able to speak about a project that will be ongoing as part of Seattle's waterfront project.

For some time now the city of Seattle has been working on renovating their waterfront and in the process commissioning 6 artists of which I am one. The city put a call out for submissions to have a monumental sculpture that represents the Coast Salish people and specifically recognizing the Puget Sound tribes. 

The project early on called for a totem pole which was quickly changed as totem poles are not customary to the Coast Salish people. Much like the project I was involved in with the city of Tacoma who also sought a totem, the decision was made to create something more customary to the culture and the land. In Tacoma's case, a female welcome figure raised in September 2010.

It seems in recent years I've been more aware of peoples choice of words in radio and television, meaning podcasts and YouTube essentially. This snapshot of pop culture has hipsters donning headdresses in bad taste, the use of the phrase "when we killed all the Indians" as a matter of fact kind of notion in conversation, or "America just doesn't have culture like Europe, we have no culture here". That last one takes the cake with me. I beg to differ and draw the line there. This country is filled with culture in art, language, song and dance with a rich history. It's just undergone many efforts to eradicate but in recent years out of the shadows seeing some appreciation.

Events like the Sante Fe art market, pow wows across the country and Tribal Journey's in the Pacific Northwest showcase a cultural identity that predates the country it's known as today. I am happy and fortunate to live in this time with this opportunity to share a culture through public art and have people know the art tradition is made with intent to honor the land from which it comes from. I believe this comes at an important juncture in our political climate as we revisit the civil rights movement of the 60's with high tension. Where monuments of controversial 'leaders' are in question for what they stand to represent.

With that said it is my honor to share a preview of the figures I will be creating as a permanent installation on the Seattle Waterfront near Piers 62/63 close to the Seattle Aquarium. The intent for the sculpture is to honor the people whose city is named after Chief Sealth. I have chosen to create three figures that represent family. The style is going to be unfamiliar to most but in time I hope that people will see the appeal of this style that has been at times mistaken as originating from Africa, the Pacific Islands or New Guinea. 

artist rendering of proposed waterfront figures for Seattle

It has long been a dream of mine to make works that relate to our tribal history and acknowledge the nuances of our sculptural tradition that have been foreign in it's own land. So I am happy to share the preview of renderings that represent figures, not of any one person, not of one tribe but one of an idea of unity and peace. These figures will be carved in western red cedar with heads cast in bronze that sit atop concrete bases. Each base will have elements that reflect aspects of Coast Salish design, carving, painting and weaving. I am hopeful people will come to appreciate the subtle ambiguity of the figures and regard them simply as beings that belong to a place  where the land meets the water and have a long history that can be understood as a harmonious and uncontroversial nature.

Native people have survived many obstacles with attempts to erase them from history. Sealth noted this in his early uncensored speech about questioning the right for his people to simply be as they are. What is perhaps most notable and inspiring to me relating to this undertaking is his words in addressing the notion that Americans at large will think of his people as gone. It seems we are in that place now even though we remain. I am filled with pride knowing the work I will make has a history that the ancestors of the land will relate to and the coming generation will grow up with and bridge that gap as we continue to survive as we always do. O'siem.

WWD 2017

When I got a message on Facebook requesting that I join a conference called World Wood Day I have to admit I was skeptical at first. For one, I had been involved in a gathering ten years prior that was an international gathering that despite having worked out in the end had very unpleasant aspects to it. That said, I was taught that when we are called upon to represent our nations we must do so. So bags packed not entirely sure what I was in for I threw together my tool case that's served me well all over so far.

Day 1

I arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday the 19th of March looking for my connection shuttle to meet Bethany Knagin an Alutiiq artist also trying to figure out where we were going exactly and we struck up a conversation and jumped on board the next bus to our destination.

That next stop we met up with the organizers along with a group from Canada wearing their traditional feather head gear and carrying their Lacrosse sticks. Next we met a few South African sculptors and a recluse First Nations elder and it started to pick up interest, what was going to happen here exactly? We all got to our designated hotels and I met my roommate, Philbert Honanie, a Hopi Kachina artist. Fortunately, he'd been on one of these events a couple years prior in China and said he'd walk me thru it.

Day 2

Monday we registered and received badges along with an outline of the weeks schedule. In this huge exhibition center in Long Beach's Convention Center there were stacks of wood slabs and sculptors ready for the taking. People asked for help moving them and in that point I ran into fellow Washingtonian Native and relation, John Smith as we were helping the South African team carry their chosen slab to their table. It turned out that he and I were assigned team NW (Northwest) along with his new apprentice Derek Grover (Skokomish). Much to our surprise we found we were left with one slab that nobody seemed to want and one that would be hard to fit our sculptural style so we had to wait for the next batch which didn't arrive until the end of the first day but it was promising and we socialized a bit while waiting looking at what each of us brought in terms of tools.

Day 3

Tuesday, Team NW faced an uphill challenge in terms that we were working on Cherry wood 18" wide by 12' long and it's something not particularly cooperative with our traditional tools but we took it on with a plan. Me, jumping into my architectural scale mind started to graph the slab to scale and exploring concepts while other teams were already carving away. I thought out loud and John heard me say "you have 20 minutes" as though we were on Iron Chef in a challenge, laughing. Fortunately it wasn't a competition it was more a gathering to showcase and mingle and learn from one another. That day we decided to approach the work as a house post and talk to the fellow carvers about the differences in Washington Native sculpture vs that of Alaska because so many had assumed we were trying to carve a totem pole.

Day 4

Wednesday with a plan in hand we started working and discovered just how challenging the cherry was vs red cedar and yellow cedar. We worked thru and made small talk but this day was great because we were seeing how we didn't let language barriers hold us back from communicating with other woodworkers. John went over to watch the South African's and showed them some sharpening techniques and myself talking with the Alaskans about formline followed by a visit to the Maori next to us working with Australian carvers. This was the day of really making friends and bonding.

Day 5

Thursday the reality set in that the following day was going to be my last there and the team would have a day of carving without me so we had to make some decisions about how to get ahead of the curve. Although we had made great strides with the advantage that we all have familiarity with Coast Salish design we still had to work hard at making the big moves work for us. This required using power tools which not every carver is keen on and in my view exceptions must be made and given we had one day to work with something on this scale, not having worked as a team prior and needing to finish something in four days, I have no regrets.

Because the gathering had limitations for resources we really had to reach out to people who had tools like sanders or grinding discs etc. Groups needing to do this were brought outside to minimize dust to the others inside and fortunately it was a sunny beautiful clear day and we made the strides we needed to.

Day 6

Friday, my final full day of carving we managed to finish out the carving enough for me to hand over the finishing details to John and Derek. We brought our work outside for the interviewers and cameramen to ask questions and have us share a family song from Skokomish and Puyallup. It was a great way to wrap up my trip there and I was sad to leave so soon.

Day 7

Having to get up at 4AM to catch my early flight wasn't easy but I made it safe and sound. I reflected on the week of experience noting how important it is to share culture and most importantly be able to receive teaching from others to grow as human beings. I loved the fact that every day on the stage a new group would perform music from their nation but most of all I loved the Mongolians, that and dancing with the Moroccans. I look forward to the opportunity to participate again and with some experience under my belt even more so.

This piece represents two basket symbols, one from Skokomish, the other Puyallup that relate to the theme "Roots". The next are two Killer Whales from a Puyallup story to represent the water, above them a woman wearing a feather cape and cedar hat with Thunderbird on it holding a wolf paddle.

Centerpiece designed by the Modern team that was central and planned the year prior.

Happy International Women's Day

So it's been quite some time and after a few people asking it's never a better time to start a blog than to get behind something dear to my heart. I love the women who have shaped my life in ways I can't even begin to understand but I will try in a brief post for this fine day.

Let's make no qualms with this posting, this is not a countdown in any particular order per say but more of a personal acknowledgment of women I have known and admire for their iniquities unto their own powerful senses that have captured my fascination and  admiration.

Barbara Earl Thomas

Barbara Earl Thomas is a visual artist, a writer, and a community activist with a longstanding record as an arts administrator. She has overseen programs for Seattle’s Department of Arts and Cultural Affairs, Bumbershoot a Seattle Arts Festival, and the Northwest African American Museum where she served as executive director from 2008-2013.

I met Barbara when she was a consulting artist to a small group of artists seeking know how of how to survive the business of art. She opened with a story as a child making art that made her grandmother smile which in turn made her feel good about herself and I was hooked. She was the first woman I met in the art world to mentor with absolute honesty about the day to day reality of being an artist for a profession and all it would entail. She and her work are both powerful as they are captivating.

Clarissa Rizal

Clarissa Rizal was an amazing artist who left us too soon. She was a member of the Tlingit weaving community apprentice of Jennie Thlunaut. Her work in woven material both customary in the way of Robes and regalia were and remain exceptional. Her fearlessness to explore her artistic creative appetite lead to great break throughs and I was ever so fortunate to learn from her openness about that creative process.

Her work is significant to the weaving community and her absence is very much felt in her recent passing but she serves undoubtedly as an inspiration in the legacy she left for us to learn from.

Ramona Bennett 

Ramona Bennett is a member of the Puyallup Tribe. She is one of many tribal members who collectively helped to ensure the rights that so many sacrificed their lives for. Ramona has been an activist for much of her life and a major spearhead in securing fishing rights for the Puget Sound tribes. She continues to be an instrumental figure including the recent need for awareness when it has come to #IdleNoMore and #NoDAPL. I had the pleasure to visit with her at an event hosted in Muckleshoot that acknowledged the warriors who fought to defend the territory and rights of our Native people in which she was acknowledged as a true bearer of the torch in keeping that alive.

Matika Wilbur

photo by Kevin Gradey

Matika, a Native American woman of the Swinomish and Tulalip Tribes (Washington), is unique as an artist and social documentarian in Indian Country- The insight, depth, and passion with which she explores the contemporary Native identity and experience are communicated through the impeccable artistry of each of her silver gelatin photographs.

I had the honor and privilege to create the logo for her 562 project that has gained world status acclaim. Her project has a goal to document all Native Nations of the United States in a collective that will give voice that Native people are very much a part of the modern world and will share their stories with a fellow Native citizen that will acknowledge them in a way that perhaps others could not and share that with the world.

susan point

For anyone who ventures or takes interest in Coast Salish art, it's understood it would not be where it is without her high driving ambition to create works of art that carry that heritage. Susan proved that carving is not strictly a mans arena but that she could really dig in and make waves.

arianna lauren

Founder of Quwutsun made Arianna has shown change starts by start up. Although it's only been a short time since she's launched her line of products she's made an impression in her community and has a promising future where the sky is the limit. She's modeled for various designers and continues to explore the creative fields of opportunity as a force of nature and ambition.

Mother, Aunties, sisters, cousins and grandmother

photo by Steven Miller

If there were a secret to my success in life and this career I have come into, it wasn't just hard work alone although that was a large part. I learned to work hard from the women who raised me. They have taught me all I know about love, life and forgiveness and understanding. I was blessed in this life to be born into a family and even more so a tribe of strong women leadership that goes back many generations. There are so many women in my family they all know who they are and I've grown up to see them become amazing mothers and at times still have the strength of our grandmother to call me out when I need to be brought in line with our teachings.

It's impossible to capture all the women who have changed the world and continue to so I can only share a snapshot before I lose your attention with what came to mind on this day in March 2017. 

Star Wars, two Native artists and a 'pioneer'

It's has been over a year since this subject was posted on the old version of the blog which had to give way for the new format but this post is important to me. It was about a year ago this time of year I spoke out about the poorly imitated works of my friends Jeffrey Verrege and Andy Everson whose works led a path for someone to come in and lay claims to for namesake.

This makes me think of the many instances a non-Native has 'pioneered' a path guided by Indians and to overlook landscapes and territory unknown to them and say 'look at this place not seen by man before these eyes of mine', shoulders back and chest out. That very notion has become all to familiar to Native people that despite our presence and experiences we have and contribute.

With the latest release of the Star Wars trailer it's no wonder to see postings all over about it and in relation to that I saw some Native individuals post links to Scott Ericksons interview on geekologie, I'm not linking to it but you can search if you like but it outlines him as someone 'pioneering' the meld of modern Sci-fi and Native art.

I took the time last year to do a comparison of my two colleagues works along with approximate release dates of their work along side this pioneer to showcase what does not take a genius to understand. The work called innovative takes a meld of something genuine and makes it into a stick figure version paraded as genius. The concern comes in when realizing how someone can cash in on this when I went to look at all the social linking that was done and the following this guy had on Pinterest alone.

My point in this all is to simply say, support the artists who laid the path for someone to come in after and lay claims to something Native Inspired and I encourage you to visit the artists websites who have given way to much sacrifice to take a leap of faith and explore that new territory.

And don't be afraid to go to geekologie and say something in that thread and be heard.

http://jeffreyveregge.com

http://www.andyeverson.com

Peter Pan, Indians and Neverland

Today I went to see Pan, Disney's latest rendition of the classic tale written by J. M. Barrie in 1904 reworked time over again and again and in this time of great political correctness many a Native activist paid much mind to it's release. This version directed by Joe Wright takes a unique take from the first 15min wherein the use of Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit and onto the use of the Ramones Blitzkieg Bop the continuity of that dissipates no other modern tunes come into being after those scenes and so it loses a sense of consistency.

I will credit Disney for going away with the fantasy tribe and poor taste of the original animated Peter Pan which brought us the greatly offensive "what makes the red man red" song from that great old time when it was perfectly alright to push non Euro-American's into propaganda and stereotypes that elevated the esteem of the day. In the notable advocate against Native appropriation authority Adrienne Keene had cited, it's better we are absent in film than to be vilified or glorified, that's my simplified version of her gist.

the original Tigerlilly that suggests Native women are freely giving to be with non-Indians dancing atop a big drum which a real Native woman would ever do and if you don't believe me, just ask.

I believe this to be true. On my recent trip to the Czech Republic for the 2nd time I again came up against the notion that I am not Native because I do not look like images of those shown around the world, and what are those exactly but images created largely in fiction of white actors, wearing make up and wigs dressed in clothing that at best resembled a compilation of tribes. The truth is not many care or say, get over it, or you lost the war but I've really never heard anyone tell me the war thing to my face. And yet as Americans we are told 'never forget'... the Alamo, Pearl Harbor, 911, all of which take place after our loss and continued striving for the promises granted in the settling of these lands.

This happened because America as it was founded made us one obsolete inferior race. We were not human beings to the new world, to this day when the fourth of July comes, radio waves still call us savages. So when the declaration stands to state all men are created equal, well except, blacks, asians, latinos and above all the native savages.

Back to the topic of the movie though itself. Like I said, I"m glad we are absent in it replaced by a mythical multicultural tribe. Back at that time of these successful writers, Native America was Neverland a place of fascination and wonder, but to the world never understood.

Today in parts of Europe, there are large numbers of people who study aspects of mostly Lakota culture and emulate it to a fanatical degree. The problem is Native America is comprised of more than 600 tribes, some which have fallen but nonetheless share the complexity and diversity of European culture. I tell friends often it's like asking an woman of Iceland to speak Spanish or a German to tell you Italian histories and traditions. Our land is vast.

Ok, again back to the movie, the characters were forced, relationships left at the editing floor and Hook a sad attempt at a young Harrison Ford/Indiana Jones. The pace if off and the villains oversold. Climax tensions of action only tool hold of me for one scene when Peter flies and then, that's about it. My recommendation for this movie and my ranting that makes little sense to most, well I'd say Netflix.