A group show exploring the visual, linguistic, and cultural currency of “X” as a potent symbol of intersectionality & social change.
After an afternoon spent at Park Point–the gorgeous six-mile beach in downtown Duluth–my partner, our kids, and friends of ours sneakily changed from swimsuits into dry clothes on the side of the road then proceeded to go to the opening reception at the Prøve Gallery where my piece Convergence was one on display as part of a group exhibition.
The show was so fun, filled with art from about a dozen different artists all exploring the theme of “X” as a symbol of intersectionality and social change. For my piece, I chose to tell the story of my experience joining others at Oceti Sakowin camp to help stop the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline, and used Xs to mark the spot that the pipeline ended up being drilled under the Missouri River.
14” x 7” – Cotton fabrics, felt batting, machine applique and quilting, hand embroidery, mounted to stretched canvas.
In 2016 thousands of people from around the globe gathered at the Oceti Sakowin Camp on the Standing Rock Reservation. We gathered in an effort to protect the waters, to protect the lands, and to uphold Tribal sovereignty. We gathered to stop the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline. This piece remembers and honors this time by continuing to tell the story.
Water was all around us at the camp, which was located on a floodplain, nestled between Cantapeta Creek and the Cannonball River, just west of their convergence with the Missouri River. To the north and south brown hills rose up cradling us. Access to camp was from the south because to the north the road was blocked by armed guards at the bridge over Cantapeta Creek. Beyond this point construction crews continued building the pipeline, which eventually led to the forced drilling and laying of pipe under the Missouri River, shown as the two embroidered red X’s.
The red stitching details some of the memories I have from the camp. The location where I first set up my tent. Morning circles. The unsettling night sounds of explosions too close for comfort. A water ceremony along the Cannonball River. The hill we climbed to access phone service. The place where we shared meals. Where I found comfort in community and assisted with a medic training teaching warriors techniques to control severe bleeding with tourniquets. The location of actions to push back private security and reclaim ground. Thanksgiving night spent walking with two dear friends under a star-filled winter’s sky. I will hold the memories and the lessons I learned during my time at Oceti Sakowin with me forever, and for that I am grateful.
Mini wiconi. Water is life.
Being in this group show and seeing how all the other artists represented the theme was really incredible. What’s more, my biggest surpise of the night was seeing that my friend Jesus Barazza and his partner Melanie Cervantes who are both established artists with the Just Seeds Collective had pieces in the show! I cannot even begin to describe what it feels like to have a piece of my art in the same show as these two incredibly talent artists and my brain is still trying to take that it!
The show’s going to be up at Prøve Gallery through mid-August! The gallery hours are on their website, so go check it out if you’re in the area!