Serpentina Arts presents Matria, Madre, y Tierra, a pop-up exhibition of works by Nancy Ariza and Zamara Cuyun at Squirrel Haus Arts, Minneapolis.
Please, join us!
Artist Reception: Saturday, March 4, 6:30-9pm
Gallery Hours: Friday, March 3, 6:30-9pm
Saturday, March 4, 4-6:30pm
Sunday, March 5, 1-4pm
https://hennepinhistory.org/event/self-made-an-art-workshop/
From the Hennepin History Museum website:
We invite teens and young adults to join local artist, Zamara Cuyún, for an art workshop centering on self identity. Participants will have an opportunity to engage in conversations and reflect on the intersections of identity and place. Ultimately, each participant will create a self-portrait based on these discussions.
Place and boundaries define the way we move through life. Throughout Minneapolis there are boundaries, both visible and invisible. The Mississippi River acts as a visible divider of north and south Minneapolis, while neighborhood boundaries are invisible unless looking at a map. But how do these boundaries affect our daily lives and understanding of ourselves? Where you live affects where you go to school, where you buy food, who you interact with, and so much more. In Minneapolis, there is a history of enforcing policies and racial boundaries that historically denied BIPOC individuals the opportunity to live in certain neighborhoods and have access to certain resources.
Today, current issues facing racial justice continue to stem from these boundaries and their histories. It’s important to understand the way in which place and boundaries shape – and are shaped by – aspects of our identities. By deepening this understanding we can better understand our place in history, our connection to each other, and our role in fighting for racial justice and equity.
The event is open to all, but will center on BIPOC voices and experiences. Therefore, we ask all participants to help us create a safe space where vulnerability is uplifted and protected. Masks are strongly encouraged. Event is free, but you are encouraged to pay as you can.
About “Reclaiming Our Grandmothers”
My artform is a vehicle for visually telling stories outside of the mainstream Minnesota narrative.
For over 500 years, most accounts of Maya history and cosmology have been produced by non-Indigenous sources. Indigenous Maya voices - especially female voices - are absent from these narratives
When Indigenous women - human and sacred alike - do make an appearance in Western-produced literature, their original roles within their cultures have been perverted. Across what is now known as, “the Americas,” Indigenous women have been gazed upon and interpreted through the European colonizers’ lenses of patriarchy and Christianity. It has been especially urgent for the colonizers to bring Indigenous women - undisciplined and troublingly liberated - under white Christian male control.
To accomplish this goal, our goddesses and sacred grandmothers were stolen, defiled, abused, transformed into “devils,” “witches,” and “shit-eaters.” False interpretations have contributed to cycles of historical trauma which persist today - not only in the way that Indigenous women are perceived by outsiders, but also as justification for countless crimes against humanity across both American continents.
In contemporary society, Indigenous women - brown and female - are objectified, romanticized, hyper-sexualized, and de-humanized. We are preconditioned by the mainstream Euro-centric cultures into which we are born and raised to de-value ourselves and to be devalued by others - reduced to the “Indian Princess” or the “Ixta Fea” (ugly, dirty Indian girl). Seemingly harmless stereotypes produce devastating consequences when we consider the alarming rates of abuse, rape, disappearance, murder, self-harm and suicide plaguing Indigenous women and girls.
However, when we all strive to decolonize ourselves, our communities, and mainstream society, we can develop a new understanding of being female - past and present - re-imagine the mythical and re-humanize the historical and the living. We can, perhaps, reclaim our sacred grandmothers, ourselves, and future generations.
The visual stories presented here are the stories of our Indigenous grandmothers that are not often told in the colonialist narratives that actively work to erase the Indio from their histories. Growing up in Mni Šota settler society, I’ve become all too familiar with the words of Captain Richard H. Pratt, “Kill the Indian...save the man” - or woman, in this case - and their tragic consequences. Perhaps, upon viewing this exhibition, other Minnesotans will recognize this shared history and the subsequent local legacy of which we are all beneficiaries on Dakhόta homeland. It’s time to present positive images and stories of Indigenous women to counter the past 500 years of “poisoning the water” and our lives.
English
Join us this Saturday, 3-5pm, at COPAL in Minneapolis for the unveiling of “Curatividad” - healing through creativity. This has been a year-long project undertaken by Claudia Valentino, Constanza Carballo and myself (with the participation of Cadex Herrera) - to create 3 large-scale visual art pieces that document the past 18 months of the pandemic and social unrest. Throughout the year, we interviewed 8 Latinx community leaders to discuss the lived experiences of Latinx families and communities, exploring our vulnerability, our collective strength, and the ways we support one another in an effort to heal.
Our hope is that through this project and traveling exhibition, the Latinx community will see themselves reflected and recognized as anonymous heroes whose strength, courage and hard work is recognized and valued, that community bonds will be reinforced and that a community that knows resilience will be inspired to continue the struggle.
Claudia Valentino is a fiscal year 2021 recipient of a Creative Support for Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Español
Todos están invitados este sábado, 3-5pm, en COPAL Minneapolis para la presentación de "Curatividad" - a curarnos a través de la creatividad. Este ha sido un proyecto de un año realizado por Claudia Valentino, Constanza Carballo y yo (con la participación de Cadex Herrera) - para crear 3 piezas de arte visual a gran escala que documenten los últimos 18 meses de la pandemia y la lucha por la justicia social. A lo largo del año, entrevistamos a 8 líderes comunitarios Latine para discutir las experiencias vividas por familias y comunidades latinas, explorando nuestra vulnerabilidad, nuestra fuerza colectiva y las formas en que nos apoyamos unos a otros en un esfuerzo por sanar.
Nuestra esperanza es que a través de este proyecto y exhibición itinerante, la comunidad Latine se vea reflejada y reconocida como héroes anónimos cuya fuerza, coraje y arduo trabajo es reconocida y valorada, que los lazos comunitarios se fortalezcan y que una comunidad que conoce la resiliencia sea inspirada a continuar la lucha.
Claudia Valentino recibió en el año fiscal 2021 una beca de Creative Support for Individuals de la Minnesota State Arts Board. Esta actividad es posible gracias a los votantes de Minnesota a través de una subvención de la Minnesota State Arts Board, gracias a una asignación legislativa del fondo del patrimonio cultural y de las artes.
The Solidarity Street Gallery festival is a 3-day festival, September 23-25, celebrating the East Side neighborhood of St. Paul along Payne Avenue with art, music, performance and conversations around justice, equity and solidarity. This year’s festival, in partnership with Oyate Hotanin (Voice of the People), focuses on “Indigenous Sovereignty and Environmental Equity.”
For more information, visit the event website at: https://www.solidaritystreetgallery.org/
For more information on Oyate Hotanin: https://oyatehotanin.org/
“Presented in partnership with NewStudio Gallery in St. Paul, Many Waters will be on view in M’s windows along Robert and 4th Streets, its skyway Ecolab Entrance, and at NewStudio Gallery.
“After a year on hold, the M’s water-themed exhibition has been rescheduled for this summer. Many Waters: A Minnesota Biennial is a look into some of the imaginative and dedicated ways that artists and culture bearers from across the state are engaging with water.”
https://new.artsmia.org/programs/mia-in-the-community/community-arts/community-commons-gallery/virtual-exhibition-breaking-the-silence-international-womens-day
“‘Breaking the Silence’ is an observation of International Women’s Day. Participating artists call attention to the daily aggressions, whether physical or psychological, that all women face across the world and in every sector of society. This exhibit critiques the current social system that we live in, which permits and defends these particular inequities. “Breaking the Silence” also honors and supports women who are or have been victims of domestic violence, and recognizes the resilience of cis- and transgender women and non-binary people who work to build more equitable and safe communities for all.”
In conjunction with “Breaking the Silence,” a virtual exhibition space created by the Minneapolis Institute of Art, exhibiting the work of 16 artists in observation of International Women’s Day. To register: https://new.artsmia.org/event/virtual-artists-talk-breaking-the-silence
Opening Reception Friday, September 13, 2019, 6-8 pm
Reclaiming Our Grandmothers
My artform is a vehicle for visually telling stories outside of the mainstream Minnesota narrative.
For over 500 years, most accounts of Maya history and cosmology have been produced by non-Indigenous sources. Indigenous Maya voices - especially female voices - are absent from these narratives
When Indigenous women - human and sacred alike - do make an appearance in Western-produced literature, their original roles within their cultures have been perverted. Across what is now known as, “the Americas,” Indigenous women have been gazed upon and interpreted through the European colonizers’ lenses of patriarchy and Christianity. It has been especially urgent for the colonizers to bring Indigenous women - undisciplined and troublingly liberated - under white Christian male control.
To accomplish this goal, our goddesses and sacred grandmothers were stolen, defiled, abused, transformed into “devils,” “witches,” and “shit-eaters.” False interpretations have contributed to cycles of historical trauma which persist today - not only in the way that Indigenous women are perceived by outsiders, but also as justification for countless crimes against humanity across both American continents.
In contemporary society, Indigenous women - brown and female - are objectified, romanticized, hyper-sexualized, and de-humanized. We are preconditioned by the mainstream Euro-centric cultures into which we are born and raised to de-value ourselves and to be devalued by others - reduced to the “Indian Princess” or the “Ixta Fea” (ugly, dirty Indian girl). Seemingly harmless stereotypes produce devastating consequences when we consider the alarming rates of abuse, rape, disappearance, murder, self-harm and suicide plaguing Indigenous women and girls.
However, when we all strive to decolonize ourselves, our communities, and mainstream society, we can develop a new understanding of being female - past and present - re-imagine the mythical and re-humanize the ancestors and the living. We can, perhaps, reclaim our sacred grandmothers, ourselves, and future generations.
The visual stories that will be presented in this exhibition are the stories of our Indigenous grandmothers that are not often told in the colonialist narratives that actively work to erase the Indio from their histories. Growing up in Mni Šota settler society, I’ve become all too familiar with the words of Captain Richard H. Pratt, “Kill the Indian...save the man” - or woman, in this case - and their tragic consequences. Perhaps, upon viewing this exhibition, other Minnesotans will recognize this shared history and the subsequent local legacy of which we are all beneficiaries on Dakhόta homeland. It’s time to present positive images and stories of Indigenous women to counter the past 500 years of “poisoning the water” and our lives.
On Thursday, July 11 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Dr. Robert Powless Cultural Center, the American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO) will host an artist talk for its latest art exhibition, titled “Long Night of the Floating Shell”. The exhibit (on display through July 19) explores an overlap in themes between two artists’ experiences as contemporary Indigenous artists navigating their connection to their ancestry and communities - Cuyún with roots in the Maya Highlands of Guatemala and Thunder from the Red Lake Nation in Greater Minnesota. This event is free and open to the public and refreshments will be served. Thunder and Cuyún will be present to engage in dialogue about some of the underlying themes in their work and to answer audience questions.
For more information, contact Moira Villiard at moirav@aicho.org.
Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/2423481037745602/
To find out more about AICHO’s Arts Programming: www.facebook.com/aichogalleries
Learn more about AICHO: www.aicho.org
Brought to you by Electric Machete Studios
Group show, curated by Rebekah Crisanta de Ybarra
Located in the upper lobby
The exhibit will explore an overlap in themes between two artists’ experiences as contemporary Indigenous artists navigating their connection to their ancestry and communities - Cuyún with roots in the Maya Highlands of Guatemala and Thunder from the Red Lake Nation in Greater Minnesota. This exhibit is free and open to the public and will be on view through July 19, ending with a more personal artist Q&A on July 11, 6-7:30pm.
For more information, contact Moira Villiard at moira.aicho@gmail.com.
To find out more about AICHO’s Arts Programming: www.facebook.com/aichogalleries
Learn more about AICHO: www.aicho.org
Art Exhibition and Award Ceremony
Exhibit features, "artists who are women of color and will take place alongside," the AICHO first annual Phenomenal Woman Awards ceremony, "honoring 10 women leaders in our community [Duluth, MN]. The Artwork displayed in this exhibit reflects representations of womanhood as related to the artists' respective cultures, equity in feminism within communities of color, and imagery inspired by women artists of color."
AICHO Phenomenal Woman Awards recipients: Karen Diver, Marlene Diver, Victoria Ybanez, Mary Ann Walt, Laurel Sanders, Wendy Savage, Karen Savage, Tawny Smith-Savage, Sarah Curtiss, and Jara McLarren. "These women are being recognized for their consistent support of and involvement at AICHO, as well as their efforts to address various barriers in the community."
For more information: https://www.facebook.com/aichogalleries/
http://www.citypages.com/arts/electric-machete-studios-join-forces-with-four-other-galleries-for-an-art-crawl/423161614
http://selfhelpgraphics.com/about/honor-the-earths-the-art-of-indigenous-resistance/
The In-between: They're Speaking, but Are We Listening?
http://madeheremn.org/showcases/spirit/zamara-cuyun
"The Made Here Showcases temporarily fill empty storefronts and commercial spaces that are in transition with art by local artists, turning the downtown Minneapolis cultural district into a walkable urban art gallery.
Spirit: Made Here will feature approximately 50 artists working in a wide variety of mediums."
- http://madeheremn.org/showcases/spirit/coming-soon
Zamara's work will be at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral on Loring Park, throughout the month of March. The Bishop's Hall Gallery is open to the public most weekdays, 8am-4pm, Saturdays (limited hours), and Sundays.
Presented by Ce Tempoxcalli, Electric Machete Studios, and
Intermedia Arts.
Curated by Gordon Coons, Ojibwa, Lac Courte Oreilles
& Rebekah Crisanta de Ybarra, Xinka-Lenca, El Salvador
"'Storytelling' is a multi-disciplinary all nations art exhibition featuring both contemporary and traditional work of Indigenous artists of the Americas whose work evokes decolonization, resistance, and cultural identity.
There are many parallels in the stories embedded and embodied in Indigenous art. From creation to flood to resistance for future generations, 'Storytelling' seeks to explore these parallels in order to understand how we are related as Indigenous nations."
- excerpt from Intermedia Arts
for more information, please, visit http://www.intermediaarts.org/Dimensions-of-Indigenous-Storytelling
Multimedia Art exhibition, curated by Electric Machete Studios.
Opening Event on Friday, October 16, 7:00pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/935863636481235/
