New USFCAM exhibition showcases work of nine Indigenous artists

TAMPA — The USF Contemporary Art Museum, part of the Institute for Research in Art in the USF College of the Arts, will present “Native America: In Translation,” running Aug. 25 through Dec. 1, at 3821 USF Holly Drive.

Curated by Apsáalooke artist Wendy Red Star and organized by Aperture, “Native America: In Translation” assembles the wide-ranging work of nine Indigenous artists who pose challenging questions about identity and heritage, land rights, and histories of colonialism.

The exhibit probes the “legacies of settler colonialism” and photography’s complex role in representing Native cultures. Featured are works by lens-based artists Rebecca Belmore (Anishinaabe, Lac Seul First Nation), Nalikutaar Jacqueline Cleveland (Yup’ik), Martine Gutierrez (American), Koyoltzintli (Ecuadorian-American), Duane Linklater (Omaskêko Ininiwak from Moose Cree First Nation), Guadalupe Maravilla (American), Kimowan Metchewais (Cree, Cold Lake First Nations), Alan Michelson (Mohawk, Six Nations of the Grand River) and Marianne Nicolson (Musgamakw Dzawada’enuxw First Nations.

A free poster featuring the work of Martine Gutierrez will be available to visitors while supplies last.

“Native America: In Translation” expands on Wendy Red Star’s role as guest editor of the fall 2020 issue of Aperture magazine. The exhibition is organized by Aperture and is made possible, in part, with generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The USFCAM presentation of “Native America: In Translation is supported in part by the Lee & Victor Leavengood Endowment; the USFCAM ACE (Art for Community Engagement) fund patrons; and the Florida Department of State, Florida Arts & Culture. Funding for this program was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Special exhibition hours will be offered on Friday, Aug. 25, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Normal gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m.

The gallery has extended hours on Thursday, to 8 p.m. The gallery is closed Sundays. All exhibits and events are free and open to the public.

The museum also has some other events upcoming:

• “Native America: In Translation” exhibition walkthrough and opening reception — Friday, Aug. 25, 6:30 to 9 p.m., at the USF Contemporary Art Museum. USF Curator of Public Art and Social Practice Sarah Howard will lead a gallery tour at 6:30 p.m., followed by an opening reception. This event is free and open to all.

• ART Thursday Concert in the Galleries: Native America: Sonic Translation — Thursday, Sept. 14, 7 p.m., at the USF Contemporary Art Museum. In response to the exhibition “Native America: In Translation,” USF students, faculty, and USF Community Music Project feature performances and world premieres of original scores composed by Dr. William Linthicum-Blackhorse and USF Faculty member, Dr. Justin Giarrusso. The free event is open to all and is presented by USF Contemporary Art Museum and USF School of Music.

• “Native America: In Translation” online conversation — Wednesday, Oct. 4, 6 p.m., via Zoom. Registration is required. In this online conversation, Wendy Red Star, exhibition curator, and artists Marianne Nicolson and Koyoltzintli, will discuss concepts and approaches to Indigenous visual sovereignty in reclaiming cultural identity. The discussion will be moderated by USF Curator of Public Art and Social Practice Sarah Howard. This is a free event.

• Guadalupe Maravilla: Kennedy Family Visiting Artist Lecture — Thursday, Oct. 19, 6 p.m., at the USF School of Art and Art History, FAH 101. Transdisciplinary visual artist, choreographer, and healer Guadalupe Maravilla will present a public lecture on his creative practice. Maravilla’s work is included in “Native America: In Translation.” This event is free and open to all and is presented by the USF School of Art and Art History Kennedy Family Artist and Scholar Residency.

• What Remains: Listening to Indigenous Perspectives — Saturday, Nov. 4, 11 a.m., at Barness Hall, USF School of Music, 3755 USF Holly Drive, MUS 107, Tampa. This forum gathers the voices of an Indigenous artist, tribal cultural preservationist, and Native American civil rights and environmental advocates in dialogue with an expert in the field of anthropology to explore ways of restoring and expanding Indigenous cultural agency and honoring tribal heritage and ecological knowledge. The forum will be moderated by USF Curator of Public Art and Social Practice Sarah Howard. The program is free and open to all.

• ART Thursday, student-led exhibition tours — Thursday, Nov. 30, 6 and 7 p.m., at the USF Contemporary Art Museum. Join us for two student-led tours of the exhibition “Native America: In Translation.” The tours are free and open to the public.

About the museum

USF Contemporary Art Museum organizes and presents significant and investigative exhibitions of contemporary art from Florida, the United States and around the world. Serving as a teaching laboratory, USFCAM’s curatorial and socially engaged initiatives and educational programs are designed to present the students, faculty, and community with current issues of contemporary art practice, and to explore the role of the arts in society. USFCAM publishes relevant catalogues, presents critically recognized traveling exhibitions and commissions new projects by national and international artists. USFCAM maintains the university’s art collection, comprising more than 5000 contemporary art works. For more information, visit cam.usf.edu.

Many ceremonies and rituals rightly remain for tribal members only. However, there are celebrations organised by Native American communities that welcome anyone to attend.

The most frequent event to experience are called Pow Wows. Full of traditional singing, dancing, drumming, and elaborate costumes made from feathers, bells, beads and shells, Pow Wows are exhilarating celebrations of tribal culture from all over the country. Dozens are hosted in California throughout the year, with September being a particularly busy month. We suggest going to the website powwows.com to find an event to suit you.

Long Beach’s Moompetam Festival typically hosted over a weekend in September (9-10 September 2023) is considered a ‘gathering of the salt water people’. The two-day event celebrates indigenous California’s maritime cultures – including the Tongva, Chumash, Acjachemen, Costanoan, Luiseno, and Kumeyaay communities – with craft making, storytelling, music and dance.

Alternatively, the annual Klamath Salmon Festival is celebrated by the Yurok tribe every August (19 August 2023). Highlights include the morning Salmon Festival Parade, followed by a traditionally cooked salmon feast, but there’s also chances to watch local tribes take part in competitive Stick Game tournaments, Indian card game tournaments, plus other demonstrations and activities. 

On the road again, and as usual I am taking you with me. This time we are going to Vancouver, British Columbia, about five hours away.

The Vancouver Art Gallery is currently showing “Fashion Fictions,” an exhibition exploring experimental design practices that explore the intersection of fashion and other modes of cultural production. Featuring more than 50 designers worldwide, the exhibition shows the influence of research-based, materially driven practices on the global fashion scene while acknowledging the proliferation of creative practices that challenge fashion’s aesthetic, material and technological conventions.

The exhibition is divided into three thematic sections: “Material Futures,” which explores the relationship between technological and scientific innovations in material research to create fabrics; “Aesthetic Prophesies,” which highlights the fusion of cultural traditions with speculative creations and designers who push the boundaries of wearability with extreme fashion; and “Responsible Visions,” which explores the importance of sustainable discourse in fashion culture, with designers incorporating adaptive reuse, upcycling and digital design into their explorations.

“‘Fashion Fictions’ is a timely and urgent exploration of the intersection of design, art and personal agency, in the tradition of numerous Vancouver Art Gallery exhibitions that broaden the public’s understanding of visual culture,” states Vancouver Art Gallery CEO and Director Anthony Kiendl.

“Fashion Fictions” is more than mannequins and dresses. It’s an exploration of creativity drawing on cultural traditions, science fiction, technology, and an interest in the natural world and sustainability. The curatorial approach favors the unexpected: Established and celebrated brands are juxtaposed with emerging designers; couture is exhibited alongside street wear; and objects that blur the boundaries between design and contemporary art are peppered throughout. Contributing curator Amber-Dawn Bear Robe selected work by several Indigenous designers and artists addressing social and environmental issues through designs.

“I am thrilled for Indigenous fashion to be integrated into the larger conversation of global fashion with this exhibition,” said Bear Robe. “The Indigenous designers curated into the show represent such a tiny fraction of the extraordinary work being fashioned by Indigenous designers across Native North America. Many more fashion stories of the original designers of this land need to be shared.”

“Fashion Fictions” will be on view at the Vancouver Art Gallery until Oct. 9.

• David Lynx is executive director of the Larson Gallery at Yakima Valley College. He writes this weekly column for Explore. Learn more at www.larsongallery.org.

Submitted by Tera Andaya.

Orcas Island Winery’s pop-up modern and contemporary art gallery, MUST, presents: “Sacred Forces: Paper + Wood ” featuring never before seen works of long-time, established local artists, Kate Geddes and Aleph Geddis, an aunt and nephew duo. The art installation opens with a free-to-the-public evening event on Thursday, August 10th at 6 PM. Light bites will be provided. Wine and artwork will be available for purchase.

Kate Geddes works in the realm of mythology. Her larger-than-life paintings begin as powerful symbols that represent something profoundly personal and cathartic, but by the painting’s end they represent something more universal. While her work is wildly original, Geddes shares that the mystical and bold emotionalism of Goya, Grunewald, and Francis Bacon inspire her. They portray startling, shocking images, yet they have great tenderness and beauty. It is this tradition to which she adds her voice.

Aleph Geddis’ sculptural works live at the intersection of traditional methods and modernist forms, informed by a lifetime fascination with the foundational structures of our world. Growing up on Orcas Island, Aleph spent many hours with his stepfather, a sculptor, carver and builder of wooden boats. Steeped in this rich environment, his early works drew inspiration from the stylized naturalism of Northwest Coast Native carvings, and later, from all he saw on a family trip to Japan. As his work evolves, there remains a consistent engagement with the simple elegance of natural forms.

The show is a collaboration between HALO: Hub for Arts & Literature on Orcas and Must Gallery. Collectively, their aim is to raise the visibility of the island’s most talented contemporary fine artists. Curated by Must Gallery owner and curator, Tera Andaya and Ayn Gailey for HALO. The show runs through September. All art inquiries can be directed to: hello@orcasislandwinery.com

Special thanks to the Orcas Island Artist Studio Tour and to The Orcas Island Winery & MUST gallery who are committed to offering space every year during the Artist Studio Tour to one HALO artist who does not have a studio to show from. Kate Geddes is the beneficiary of that commitment for 2023.

To learn more about the artists, visit www.geddesart.com and www.alephgeddis.com To learn more about HALO & MUST, visit www.wearehalo.org and www.mustgallery.art.

Carpooling is encouraged. Children and families are welcome to the opening event. Orcas Island Winery is located at 2371 Crow Valley Road.

NEWBURYPORT — The Newburyport Bank Charitable Foundation has made a multiyear commitment of $75,000 to the Newburyport Art Association as the lead sponsor of its 75th anniversary.

The NAA held its first exhibition in July 1948 under the leadership of Sam Sargent, a painter, art teacher and native of Newburyport.

Throughout the years, the organization leased exhibition space at the old courthouse at the Bartlet Mall, the YWCA, and galleries on Threadneedle Alley and State Street.

In 1969, the NAA purchased the building that is now at 65 Water St and is home to the Sargent, Hills and Hartson galleries.

The NAA has more than 500 members. Artists exhibit work in a full calendar of open, juried, invitational, featured artist and featured interest group shows.

The NAA also offers educational programs and supports two community outreach programs, ArtLink and OpArt. NAA will hold events and programs to celebrate its 75th anniversary.

“What makes our area such a great place to live and work is the cultural diversity that it offers,” said Lloyd L. Hamm, president and CEO of Newburyport Bank.

“The NAA is a shining example of that,” he added. “The programs they offer are not about art for art’s sake, but rather how everyone can harness the power of art for their own enrichment, as well as for the benefit of the world around them. The charitable foundation is proud to make a multiyear commitment to NAA to help them further their efforts.”

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – A Whitehaven native is back home exhibiting his artwork, for the first time ever, to bring joy to the community through his pop-up exhibit that highlights celebrities, athletes, and local faces in the 901.

Art has always been an outlet for artist Mohamed Fofana to let his imagination flow.

“There was just freedom, I just wanted to create,” Fofana said. “It made me feel good, it allowed me to dream, it allowed me to connect to the world how I saw it.”

Fofana said his artwork tells his life story.

“When I was little and I first moved to America, Memphis, Tennessee, I didn’t speak English, I didn’t have many friends, I spent a lot of time drawing,” Fofana explained.

Now, those drawings, dating back to his younger years, that he once considered private, are now on display to the public.

“I want to do a show, to show people this artwork,” Fofana said. “To show, ‘look where I started and look where I am.’ I don’t know where I’m going but there’s progress in just going for something.”

The exhibit, S Journey Home, is a collection of his diverse artwork from 2003 to now. Using art as a segue to showcase experiences and highlighting the people of Memphis.

“My art is to tell people’s story that I know, people from where I’m from,” he said. “I wanted to do that so they could see themselves. In a sense, kind of validates their living experience. Like you matter, you can be art.”

In his journey home, he only has one mission.

“When I first started making my art, it was just for me. It wasn’t for money, it wasn’t for approval, it just made me happy,” Fofana said. “It brought me joy and when I started sharing a little bit with other people, I saw that it brought them joy as well. So it kind of shifted my perspective and how I saw my art and the purpose became to bring happiness to other people.”

Fofana’s work will be on display until Saturday at the Medicine Factory.

To schedule an appointment for a tour, click here.

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MINNEAPOLIS — A vibrant acknowledgment of the place we call home is cruising all across the Twin Cities.

Metro Transit now has a bus covered from front to back in Native American artwork that was created by a local Native artist.

The story behind the colors and figures serves as a cultural history lesson, while the story of the driver who first got behind the wheel serves as a beautiful twist of fate.

A Metro Transit bus passing by probably wouldn’t have you doing a double take. They mostly look the same other than a variety of advertisements on the sides. That’s all the more reason why the carrying an entire pallet of colors is turning heads.

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“I didn’t want it to be too saturated, but also colorful enough so when people see it, they’re like, ‘whoa, I’ve never seen a pink and purple pastel bus in my life’,” said Marlena Myles.

Myles is the Spirit Lake Dakota artist who turned public transportation into a moving mural with a message. In large letters on the side of the bus it states: “We are on Dakota land.”

“I wanted to show that Dakota people, we’re still here. We’re a vibrant culture, the colors are to represent that,” she said.

The art was originally designed for signage at Ramsey County Parks, but Myles happily obliged Metro Transit’s request to have it wrapped on a bus.

“To Dakota people, we used to paint over our teepees and tell stories that wrapped around the tipi. So I figured, this is like a modern way of wrapping a design an object that we use every day,” Myles said.

The stories here include connections to wildlife, such as horses to represent how Native Americans used to travel. There are flowers in reference to plants being medicine and a learning tool. Tipis symbolize neighborhoods, while collections of colors showcase the vibrancy of different ethnicities and cultures working together.

Several drivers steer those stories across town, but Kevin Montry was one of the first to do so.

“This happened just by chance that I got this bus,” said Montry.

The bus was already sent out on a route that day in late spring, so he had to find it in St. Paul to make a swap.

“As soon as I drove up to it, it was this art and it was native and I… it just made me smile and touched me,” he said before pausing as emotions made his voice tremble. “I just felt like, of course, it’s me.”

Montry is Lakota and Anishinaabe. He drove it to a celebration event for the bus where Myles was waiting. He happily told her of his indigenous roots.

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“And she said ‘Of course you’re the one who brought the bus.’ Because in our Indian world ways, we don’t believe in coincidence,” he said.

Montry believes fate put him behind the wheel. It was an opportunity to honor his heritage that was a long time coming.

“I learned my (Native American) ways older in life. I never learned them as a kid because my mom and dad grew in the time to be ashamed of Indian and so it was time for me to have pride,” he said.

Montry is also a proud sun dancer.

“It was good for me to know too that the person driving this bus is feeling empowered because of it,” added Myles.

Her artwork combined with Montry’s energy feels like a match made in heaven. Or in this case, on the land their ancestors once called home.

“It was like we’re finally people that used to be invisible and now we’re visible,” he said through a smile.

If you want to see the bus, or learn which route it’s on for the day, click here to see the tracker. 

The artwork of a former KGB agent is now part of the August highlights at Local Color’s Artists Cooperative in downtown Gloucester.

Larry Martin-Bittman, formerly known as Ladislav Bittman, made Cape Ann his home and moved to Rockport. When he retired as a journalism professor form Boston University, he turned to art full time and found a welcome community of artists here. While teaching, he was known for his specialty and a course titled “Disinformation and the Press.” He also authored books, including “The Deception Game,” and co-authored “The KGB and Soviet Disinformation.”

Disenchanted with the Soviets, he defected to the United States when the Soviet Union took over his beloved Czechoslovakia in 1968.

When he died at home in 2018, the New York Times obit stated: “Lawrence Martin-Bittman, 87, Master of Disinformation, Dies.” But on Cape Ann, he was known as a soft-spoken and pleasant friend to many, from those on the waterfront to the creative community.

He was an active member of Local Colors for more than a decade, and he left some of his work to the Unitarian Universalist Church in Rockport so that any proceeds from sales would benefit the church as well as local non-profit organizations. In this effort, Local Colors has collaborated with the church to offer his work for sale to the public this August.

There will be a public reception at the Gloucester gallery, at 121 Main St., this Thursday, Aug. 10, from 5 to 7 p.m. with refreshments. The event is part of Gloucester’s Culture Splash each Thursday.

Martin-Bittman’s work was often whimsical. His visions of Cape Ann and rooftop scenes of his native Prague both regularly sold and often made him one of the most popular artists at the gallery.

“His art was so intriguing that I asked him many years ago if his paintings had special meanings. He just looked at me and laughed, indicating with a smile that there was not necessarily any special meaning behind his paintings. I guess the public will just have to judge for themselves,” said Kathy Bucholska, a 33-year member of Local Colors.

Another longtime member, jeweler Ann Schlecht recalled how he became part of her “family”.

“I met Larry at Local Colors, and we became close friends. I remember sharing with him that he reminded me of my dad. He was so good to my boys and me, sharing many meals while listening to his amazing war stories,” said Schlecht. “He was a very special person.”

On display will be Bittman’s watercolors and acrylics of local scenes, abstracts including his interpretations of Picasso’s works, prints and collages.

Also featured for August is the artwork of members Mya Rae Nelson and Bessie Blum.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Lowcountry Weekend) – The International African American Museum (IAAM) will host a special exhibition by Fletcher Williams III: “When It Rains It Shines.” The exhibition will open on Aug. 31 and will be on display through Dec. 3. The exhibition is made possible by support from Bank of America.

In “When It Rains It Shines,” Williams constructs a labyrinth of personal memories, rituals, and sacred hideaways using sculpture, sound, and light. It is both a dreamscape and a psychedelic vision of what it is to be in and of the South. Both disorienting and inviting, this immersive installation offers visitors an opportunity to interact with the South in new and thought-provoking ways.

An opening reception, hosted by IAAM, will be held on Aug. 30, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. This reception is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Those interested in attending can register here, or at iaamuseum.org/events.

On Oct. 11, from 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m., the public is invited to join Williams at IAAM as he discusses his journey and the myriad personal and cultural landscapes that inform his first solo museum exhibition, “When It Rains It Shines.” Williams will be in conversation with award-winning journalist, art critic, and curator, Chase Quinn. Space is limited, register here or at iaamuseum.org/events.

Fletcher Williams III is a multi-disciplinary artist from Charleston, S.C. His work has been featured in multiple group shows and solo exhibitions throughout the country. His conceptual art-making practice is rooted in Southern vernacular. Williams earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Cooper Union for the Advancement in Science and Art, where he studied drawing, painting, sculpture, print-making, and graphic design. While the core of Williams’ education focused on producing multimedia artwork, he devoted much time to studying social anthropology, the foundation of which continues to influence his work. Williams’ professional career began with a studio in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, N.Y., where he produced work for several solo and group exhibitions and worked as a freelance graphic designer. In 2013 Williams returned home to North Charleston, S.C., and re-introduced himself with a self-produced solo exhibition, Souvenir (2015).

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