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By Kaili Berg

June 26, 2024

On Sunday, June 30, distinguished Diné hip-hop artist-educator, rapper, and producer Def-I will be among the notable Indigenous artists at Summer Sessions, an artistic benefit to support the 4KINSHIP Indigenous Futures Fund in Sante Fe, N.M. 

The event, taking place at the hotel and event center Mystic Santa Fe, kicks off at 6:30 PM, inviting guests to enjoy Indigenous soul food provided by Yapopup. From 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM, attendees will experience a blend of visual and audio artistry, with performances by Def-I, Raven Bright, Lucaa, Hataałi, and Nizhonniya Austin. All proceeds from ticket sales will go directly toward supporting Indigenous artists through the  4KINSHIP Indigenous Futures Fund.

Tickets for “Summer Sessions” are available now, and early arrival is encouraged to partake in the pre-event festivities. 

Def-I has received numerous awards for his artistic contributions and leadership, including the 2023 New Mexico Male Artist of the Year, The Hustle Award, and the title of U.S. Hip-Hop Cultural Ambassador through Next Level USA. His poetic rapport and dynamic performances have made him a standout figure in the hip-hop community, earning him a reputation for excellence and innovation. 

Native News Online spoke with Def-I about his musical journey, from his early passion for poetry and percussion to embracing hip-hop as a cultural outlet and debuting his latest album, “Blue Hour,” at Summer Sessions. 

Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you became inspired to make music?
I got inspired when I was really young, probably around middle school. I fell in love with poetry and percussion. Around the same time, I had to choose between pursuing a traditional musical lifestyle through ceremonial practices, powwows, and drumming, or choosing my own path.

I fell in love with hi- hop, especially the cultural aspects like breakdancing, DJing, and battle rapping. I started in the underground rap circuit as a teenager and grew into a musical artist around high school.

My older brother, who was tragically murdered a few years ago, really inspired me to pick up the pen and the microphone. I felt a strong calling to express myself. I initially tried to be a dancer, but my peers were so skilled that I didn’t feel as confident. I then fell in love with rap because I felt you could still dance with words.

Rap allowed me to play with language, rhythms, and sounds to create beautiful effects. I see a strong connection between traditional music and contemporary hip-hop. There are many beautiful parallels between the two cultures, and I find myself somewhere in the middle of both.

What does participating in an event like Summer Sessions mean to you personally and professionally?
I think the Summer Sessions are really cool. In Santa Fe, there are many great venues I enjoy, but I haven’t been to the Mystic Hotel before. This will be my first time performing there. The outdoor stage and settings look like a great environment for the public and hotel guests.

I hope people come out and enjoy the show. Professionally, it’s a good event, too, because it’s sponsored by TurboTax. Sponsorships are really helpful in this profession to meet everyone’s needs and requirements for travel and other expenses. It means a lot to me to be part of this event.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length. 

Can you share the story behind the songs you’ll be showcasing at the event?
I’ll be showcasing some new songs from my latest album, “Blue Hour.” This album has taken me to various places, so it holds a lot of meaning for me. I’ll also perform some unreleased songs and a few older ones from my musical catalog. I’m excited about that and will also do some freestyling. My live performances tend to be unique each time, so audiences can expect something different.

What impact do you hope your music will have on the audience, especially considering the diverse group of attendees?
I’m really excited that 4KINSHIP is bringing us all together. The lineup is very eclectic, featuring a variety of musical styles. I hope my music brings good energy and vibes alongside everyone else’s. I might be the only rapper there, but I think everyone will enjoy it. I always give my best when performing, especially for audiences of all ages. So, I’m really looking forward to it.

What advice would you give to young Indigenous artists looking to make their mark in the music world?
I think it’s crucial, especially in music, to start at a younger age if you’re a young artist. It’s the perfect time to begin and start working on your craft—whether it’s your performances, songwriting, or other aspects of your music. 

At the same time, be patient with yourself because growth takes time and practice. I encourage every artist out there, especially younger ones, to keep believing in yourselves. Don’t get discouraged by obstacles; instead, work through them as best you can. 

Reach out to other artists you know or admire for advice—they might have valuable insights to share. You can also connect with like-minded individuals who share your dreams and goals. 

Are there any other projects in the future that you are particularly excited about?
I’m releasing a couple of new albums — one independently and another with a label in California called Broken Complex. There’s a lot of new content coming out soon. Additionally, I’m launching a new product named after my album, which will be available in some local dispensaries soon.

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About The Author

Author: Kaili BergEmail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Staff Reporter

Kaili Berg (Aleut) is a member of the Alutiiq/Sugpiaq Nation, and a shareholder of Koniag, Inc. She is a staff reporter for Native News Online and Tribal Business News. Berg, who is based in Wisconsin, previously reported for the Ho-Chunk Nation newspaper, Hocak Worak. She went to school originally for nursing, but changed her major after finding her passion in communications at Western Technical College in Lacrosse, Wisconsin.

The elegant, gold dome of the Massachusetts State House does not just crown a legislative building but a museum-like collection of state history and art.

Lining the State House’s walls are portraits of Massachusetts’ former governors, dating as far back as the 17th century. There are hundreds of pieces of art throughout the building.

But one group deeply intertwined with Massachusetts’ history is largely absent from the building. The State House features just one work depicting Indigenous peoples: a 1903 oil painting on the wall of Memorial Hall titled “John Eliot Preaching to the Indians.”

“That’s the mural that shows Native Americans were being preached to in order to learn Christianity because that’s what the English settlers thought they needed, which was not the case,” said Mary Rinehart, director of State House tours.

Both that painting and the only other trace of Indigenous peoples in the State House — various iterations of the Massachusetts state seal — are considered offensive and a source of contention for the state’s Indigenous population, who say the omissions represent a lack of awareness about Indigenous peoples’ role in state history. The state has recently taken steps to overhaul the state seal, but Indigenous groups want more to be done.

“Massachusetts doesn’t really think of itself as having much of an Indigenous population,” said Mahtowin Munro, co-leader of the United American Indians of New England. “We’re here, and our voices have largely been sidelined.”

Memorializing history

Monuments, plaques and artifacts scattered throughout the State House honor historically significant groups — Civil War Army nurses, fallen soldiers, Black military regiments. Inside the Massachusetts House of Representatives chamber, surnames of important figures in state history span the vault.

Five murals depicting colonial history span the walls underneath the title, “Milestones on the road to freedom of Massachusetts.” The series features paintings of the Puritans’ arrival in 1630, John Hancock’s argument for the Bill of Rights and the repentance of a disgraced Salem Witch Trials judge.

Absent from the room where Massachusetts’ 160 representatives convene to discuss legislation is any mention of Indigenous history or any mention of the impact of English colonization on local tribes.

Today, “colonizer history” is far better memorialized in Massachusetts than Indigenous history, said Jean-Luc Pierite, president of the North American Indian Center of Boston.

“When you look at it, and you’re familiar with all the stories, all the imagery, then you can know how to decode all of these things,” said Jean-Luc Pierite, president of the North American Indian Center of Boston. “It really impacts the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”

Pierite said there is already a “lack of trust with public institutions from Indigenous peoples” — a sentiment he said is exacerbated by the lack of representation in the State House.

“The fact that Indigenous peoples are absent, except for the seal itself, that’s something that we’re really trying to tackle,” Pierite said.

A new state seal?

The near-300-year-old Massachusetts state seal, an emblem of an Indigenous figure and its accompanying motto, appears on state paraphernalia from official documents to law enforcement vehicles to the State House’s stained-glass windows.

Adopted in 1780 and made official in 1885, the state seal — displayed all around the building — features a Native American figure holding a bow in his right hand and an arrow in his left pointing downward to indicate peace. Above the figure is a sword, pointing downward. The sword is modeled after one owned by Myles Standish, a military officer of the Plymouth colony notorious to local tribes for his attacks on Indigenous peoples.

Circling the Indigenous figure on the seal is Massachusetts’ state motto: “By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty” — a testament to peace Munro described as “a real problem” given the violent history toward Indigenous peoples.

The state created a commission in January 2022 to revise the seal and motto. The commission disbanded in November, concluding the seal and motto do not represent those ideals and should be redesigned. The commission advocated establishment of another commission to determine a new seal and motto.

But six months after the final report, Munro said, state officials have not displayed enough movement to implement any of the ideas for a new design.

“The recommendations have been made,” said Melissa Ferretti, chairwoman of the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe and a member of the now-defunct seal and motto commission. “And I guess now it’s just waiting to see what’s next. I mean, I don’t know, either.”

Legislative efforts

A coalition of community organizations and Native American activists is supporting a cluster of legislative proposals to honor Indigenous Peoples Day, protect Native American heritage, remove racist mascots, educate Indigenous youth and implement Native history curriculum in public schools.

But part of the challenge of passing such legislation is the fact that non-Indigenous people misunderstand Indigenous peoples’ history, which is largely misrepresented in Massachusetts, Munro said.

State Rep. Christine Barber of the 34th Middlesex District, lead sponsor on the Indigenous Peoples Day bill, said the myths that built Massachusetts, like Columbus Day, are founded on a notion of erasing Indigenous people. The bill to establish Indigenous Peoples Day and the rest of the legislative agenda will hopefully restore Native Americans to the story of the nation, she said.

“I’m hoping that brings more acknowledgement on that day,” Barber said. “Not just to have a day, but to have more understanding about the history of the culture, but also people who are here now and living in our communities.”

For Massachusetts to better serve Indigenous needs, Pierite said, open communication is crucial. He said educating government officials, from city councilors to state legislators to governors, to create “an institutionalized memory” of centuries of Indigenous history will ensure legislative progress and more equitable representation.

“There’s such deep, rich history, especially when we start to kind of wrap our heads around what has been the relationship between Massachusetts the Commonwealth and the Indigenous tribes,” Pierite said. “There is an educational labor that needs to happen.”

This story is part of a collaborative effort between GBH News and a journalism class at Boston University taught by professor Brooke Williams.

By Terry Lusty, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

(ANNews) – The beautiful art on the cover of the May 2024 edition of Alberta Native News is a detail from a painting entitled In Rhythm With Nature by Jessica Desmoulin, an artist who is based in the Edmonton region. Recently, she had her own one-person show at Edmonton’s popular Bearclaw Gallery at 10403 – 124th St., just west of the downtown core.

The May 4 – 16 exhibit and sale, entitled Where the Journey Takes You, proved a superb example of what Jesse is capable of – as well as offering a glimpse into what her future might hold as one of Canada’s breakout Ojibway talents who is now taking her place in a demanding field where the competition can be quite fierce and certainly challenging.

Here we have a fine example of a true artist. She is totally self-taught, never attended art school or took any formal art courses, and just “lets it flow” from within, from what the Creator gifted her with internally and spiritually to share with the world around her.

Her art style could be likened to the traditional eastern Woodland Indigenous artists such as the late and great Norval Morrisseau, Roy Thomas and Carl Ray, among others. Her illustrations are not only compelling, but expressly complimentary of the flowing lines style associated with such luminaries as Alex Janvier, Morrisseau, Jackson Beardy and others. Desmoulin also incorporates connecting lines, division circles and x-ray imagery — a format now legendary among the greats and a style that exemplifies human relationships/connections with the land, animals and plants as well as the spirit world itself.

In the early stages of her life, Desmoulin didn’t visualize art in any serious manner, certainly not as a career. That, however, all changed about 20, 25 years ago when she unfortunately fell victim to an illness that limited her ability to pursue the demands of manual labour.

With that in mind, she reassessed her position in life and gave consideration to her love of art. She started to experiment with it and found both enjoyment and talent. Her mother liked what she saw and encouraged her to look at marketing her works. She continued to create pieces, more or less instinctively, and from the heart. In short, one could say that she stumbled into it as a career by accident and also as a form of therapy.

Jessica Desmoulin with her painting “Moon Glows and Sun Shines” on exhibit at Bearclaw Gallery in Edmonton. Photo by Terry Lusty.

As she poured herself into her new-found passion, she discovered an innate affinity for the Woodland style of some notable Indigenous artists of Canada. The imagery spoke to her and appeared to reflect her own thoughts and feelings about art styles.

Really, it was all so surreal, she said. It seemed as if the stage had been set for her to intuitively develop her own unique style from the artistic elements around her and which had lain dormant within her being/soul for years, but were now emerging instinctively. On that note, she simply began incorporating those elements in her art just as some of Canada’s past great Indigenous artists had done.

Then things began to go her way. She happened upon Jackie Bugera and Bearclaw Gallery in Edmonton. And, as that old adage goes, “the rest is history.”

Bugera provided her with “advice” and “insights” of the art world and marketing that put her on a proper path and helped her on her journey, she explained. That good turn, she continued, will always stay with her and is something for which she is tremendously grateful.

With Bearclaw at the helm, assisting her in exhibiting and promoting her art, Desmoulin’s visibilty escalated and the demands for her art and skills surged. Her own grandmither who lives in Thunder Bay purchased her first major piece of work after spotting it online. Thereafter, matters just snow-balled. The University of Alberta acquired pieces, her art was included among other artists in books and magazines. Travel Alberta, schools and communities jumped into the picture as did hospitals and youth programs like Spirit Runner.

And so, this begs the question put to Desmoulin, “What would you really like to see down the road, what dream would be your wish come true?”

Her response: “I’d love to see my name alongside Norval’s, to do shows in places like Toronto, New York, Vancouver …. worldwide!”

With her talent it is possible that her dream will come true.

The door is open right now for emerging artists and established artists to join the great Indigenous artists of our time. Might Jessica Desmoulin be one of those to complete the picture? Only time will tell. She’s definitely knocking on the door, ready and willing to step up to the plate if given the opportunity.

When it comes to Edmonton being her home base, she loves the area because it’s treated her well, it’s been “kind and welcoming,” she says. She also welcomes the opportunity to learn more about her culture and reconnect with it.

On a parting note, she is delighted and grateful to Jackie and the Bearclaw Gallery for helping her with her career.

Visit Bearclaw Gallery at 10403-124th St. in Edmonton to view Jessica’s art in addition to the art of many Indigenous artisans from across Canada and the far North.

BROKEN ARROW, Oklv. – Museum Broken Arrow is hosting a pop-up shop this summer. Opening in May and running through July, INDIGICHIC opened in the Barbara Brown Kimbrough Gallery at the museum. The pop-up shop is the business arm of the Native Fashion Arts Collective, a group of more than 30 Indigenous designers and artists specializing in wearable art. 

Items in the shop blend traditional Indigenous designs and motifs with modern re-workings and have been described as “post-traditional indigenous style”.  Items at the shop range from high-end clothing pieces, to jewelry, and t-shirts. There is something for every budget at INDIGICHIC. Native Fashion Arts Collective co-founder Veronica Pipestem (Otoe-Missouria/Osage) related that there are pieces from five to $15, with a lot of the items between the $40 to $80 price range and a few more expensive.  

Each month the shop has a featured artist. Randi Narcomy-Watson (Seminole/Mvskoke) is the featured artist for June. Watson specializes in textile art and uses patchwork and quiltwork within her designs. Watson incorporates traditional designs and re-thinks size and scale. Explaining her work, she stated, “I went to school and I have a master’s in fine arts, and so I try to blend a little bit of the fine art and cultural arts together, like a smash up. I always feel like I kind of modernize it a little bit. I like to blow things up and make them bigger.” Watson’s jackets on sale at the pop-up are an example of this aesthetic with their large strips of interlocking patchwork.   

Wendy Ponca (Osage) was featured in May. Skilled at beadwork and ribbon work, Ponca creates silk-screened lengths of cloth, painted canvas, and embellished leather for her designs.

The pop-up at Museum Broken Arrow is the second time INDIGICHIC has had a retail space. This past holiday season the collective was hosted at Southwest Trading Company on 11th and Peoria in Tulsa. Betty Gerber (Mvskoke), current Director of the Museum Broken Arrow, knew right away she wanted to host INDIGICHIC. Gerber shared, “I was just thrilled to have this pop-up shop. When I visited their pop-up shop in Tulsa over the holidays, I thought, ‘this is phenomenal.’ The quality of the design and the merchandise blew me away.”

According to Pipestem, the holiday shop gave the collective a chance to see how much space they can utilize and an idea for what a retail space might look like for them. Thinking they would only take up a third of the gallery space, the shop has actually filled the over 900 square foot space as well as a portion of the museum’s gift shop. 

Other artists featured in the INDIGICHIC pop-up include Hillary Ashmore (Navajo), Jaylee Lowe (Seminole/Mvskoke), Hud Oberly, (Osage/Caddo/Comanche), Mary Hammer (Cheyenne & Arapaho/Latina/Osage), Kenneth Johnson (Mvskoke/Seminole), Kristin Gentry (Choctaw) and Leslie Deer (Mvskoke). INDIGICHIC special edition coffee by Osage-owned Ekowah Coffee is also available. 

Museum Broken Arrow is located at 400 S Main Street in Broken Arrow and is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Thursday from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. 

For more information and to view a list of artists and designers, visit INDIGICHIC. 

NEW YORK, June 25 (UPI) — Fancy Dance star Isabel Deroy-Olson, who is Tr’ondek Hwech’in First Nation/Anishinaabe, says she is excited to finally see Indigenous artists and stories getting the attention they deserve from Hollywood.

“What really drew me to this film, in particular, is the reality of it,” Deroy-Olson, 19, told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.

“Getting to portray Indigenous characters in such a nuanced way is so important because, for so long, we’ve just been caricatures,” said the Three Pines and Under the Bridge actress.

“I didn’t grow up with representation, so getting to be representation for my younger cousins and my younger sibling, and them looking at the screen and seeing me and seeing themselves, is really important.”

Deroy-Olson said that, outside of the 1998 live-action movie, Smoke Signals, and the 2002 animated adventure, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, she didn’t see many examples of the Native American perspective as a kid.

But she loves how the recent arrival of TV shows like Reservation Dogs, Dark Winds, Rutherford Falls, 1883, 1923, Yellowstone and Echo is changing how Indigenous cultures and issues are portrayed.

“This new wave of really, really talented, Indigenous media makers is just paving the way for so many Indigenous creatives. It is really amazing and I’m really grateful that I get to be a part of it because there’s so much room in the industry for us,” she said.

“It’s just about getting there and we’re really working at it and I think we’re doing a great job.”

Premiering Friday on Apple TV+, Fancy Dance is a contemporary film from writer-director Erica Tremblay.

It follows 13-year-old Roki (Deroy-Olson), who lives with her loving drug-dealer auntie, Jax (Lily Gladstone), on Oklahoma’s Seneca-Cayuga reservation after her mother Wadatawi disappears just before a big annual powwow.

When Jax loses custody of Roki to her White grandfather, Frank (Shea Whigham), the aunt and niece “borrow” his car to look for Wadataw themselves because jurisdictional red tape, lack of resources and doubts about the woman’s reliability mean the authorities aren’t as concerned about her whereabouts as her family is.

Deroy-Olson was 17 when she filmed her performance as Roki.

“But I was so grateful that I got to play younger because it’s so fun,” the actress said.

“She’s so full of light and full of hope. She’s really a breath of fresh air. She’s very quiet, and I’m very drawn to characters like that, who are very few in words, but you just know what they’re thinking.”

Roki might not say much, but she is always watching and learning from those around her.

This also isn’t the first time Wadatawi has left home without telling her family where she is going and, although Roki knows her auntie and her community will look out for her, she senses something is different about this absence.

“We really get to see her coming of age,” Deroy-Olson said.

“She’s very intuitive and she notices how Jax reacts to things, and I wouldn’t say she’s in denial throughout the film, but I think she definitely knows [her mother’s fate], but she’s holding onto that hope.”

The actress said she and Gladstone — who was Oscar-nominated last year for her work in Killers of the Flower Moon — didn’t have a chemistry read before landing their roles in Fancy Dance.

“Erica just knew immediately. She was like, ‘That’s our Roki and you guys look pretty similar,’ and we are very similar in a lot of ways and, so, we got to the production office and that’s how we met,” Deroy-Olson recalled.

“It was this immediate bond that we had,” she added. “It was really cool because we just got along instantly and people have said that Jax and Roki’s relationship feels so lived in, and that’s because it is. Lily and I have so much love for each other.”

After their experience on Fancy Dance, Gladstone suggested Deroy-Olson play a younger version of her character Cam in the Hulu true-crime drama, Under the Bridge.

“Immediately, I was just cast,” Deroy-Olson said about her role in the miniseries.

“I didn’t even have to audition for the role, which was so lovely and I was so grateful because it’s such a well-done show and a well-rounded show and I’m really proud to be a part of it.”

On Monday, the Native Hawaiian Intellectual Property Working Group comprised of experts in native Hawaiian law, indigenous intellectual property, and cultural practitioners held its first meeting at the Hawaiʻi State Capitol.

The working group was established following the adoption of HCR108 by the House of Representatives in 2023. This resolution urged the creation of a nine-member working group to study policies and legislation concerning native Hawaiian intellectual property.

Rep. Darius K. Kila (D-44 Honokai Hale, Nānākuli, Mā‘ili) who introduced HCR108, explained that the formation of the group represents efforts to protect the intellectual property rights of Kānaka Maoli, as well as their cultural expressions, language, and art form.

“Today demonstrates native Hawaiians leading the charge in protecting and preserving their cultural legacy. The establishment of the working group stems from a profound concern over the blatant exploitation and dilution of native Hawaiian culture, language, and artifacts for profit across the globe,” said Kila. “The group’s primary objectives are to draft and propose substantive legislation and policies that can be enacted in the upcoming legislative session.”

During the first meeting, working group members voted on leadership roles and elected Kumu Hula Vicky Holt Takamine to serve as Chair, and Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation Executive Director Makalika Naholowaa to serve as Vice-Chair. Additionally, the group approved Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, Kila, and Rep. David A. Tarnas as non-voting members.

These legislators will participate in policy discussions and provide additional support to the working group.

Discussions taken place at Monday’s meeting included examples of disputes over Indigenous intellectual property that have taken place within the past decade. For example, Aloha Poke Co., a Chicago-based food chain, sent cease-and-desist letters to Hawaiian poke shops to stop using “Aloha” and “Poke.” Similarly, a baking mix company ʻOkina recently faced backlash for trademarking the name of a Hawaiian diacritical mark.

“You can’t trademark aloha. It’s not for sale,” said working group chair Vicky Holt Takamine. “We now have a working group that will develop policies and procedures to educate the general public about native Hawaiian intellectual property and protect our cultural rights as native Hawaiians in our own ancestral home.”

“This is the first time native Hawaiians are being invited to give our manaʻo and participate in the conversation about governance, coming up with ways to improve our law so we can better protect the intangible assets like native Hawaiian intellectual property,” said working group Vice Chair Makalika Naholowa‘a.

The concept of preserving intellectual property is widespread among indigenous groups, which have developed strategies and frameworks to protect their collective rights. Examples include the Indian Arts and Crafts Board, funded by the U.S. Department of the Interior; the Toi Iho registered trademark for Maori art and artists, supported by a charitable trust; and the Alaska State Council on the Arts Silver Hand Program for Alaska Native artists, funded by the state.

“This initiative holds monumental significance, offering groundbreaking opportunities for indigenous communities in Hawai’i, and across the United States. It paves the way for these communities to assert true control and direction over their culture, language, arts, and artifacts. The potential impact of this work is boundless, promising a future where Indigenous heritage is respected, preserved, and celebrated,” said Kila.

The Native Hawaiian Intellectual Property Working Group currently has eight members, with one vacancy awaiting appointment by Sen. Ron Kouchi. The group will meet twice a month to deliberate on policies and ideas for the 2025 legislative session. They are scheduled to submit a final report no later than forty days before the commencement of the 2025 legislative session.

Snow Bear, also known as Melanie Villeneuve of Vankleek Hill, has raised $109.85 for the Odawa Native Friendship Centre in Ottawa.

Villeneuve’s Kindness Market, where she sells Indigenous crafts from her Snow Bear’s Arts and Crafts Corner at various local events, aims to provide a compassionate boost to Indigenous, Inuit, and Métis communities.

The Kindness Market is organized with the assistance of the Creating Centre, Samme Putzel, Susie Fairbrother, and the Vankleek Hill Farmer’s Market.

This spring, Villeneuve, who is Métis and makes some of the crafts, set up the Kindness Market this spring at Refuge Les Chevaux d’Espoir horse refuge, an artisan market in Vankleek Hill, and the Vankleek Hill Farmer’s Market.

A Bengal artist who transformed a once-nondescript forest village into an art hub has now connected with several other surrounding settlements — once the hotbed of the Maoist movement — to make art a way of life and empower marginalised communities.

It was in 2000 that Mrinal Mandal graduated from the Government Arts College in Kolkata, following which, as a landscape artist, he scanned the rural landscape of Bengal to familiarise himself with various traditional arts. Then, in 2008, his native place, Jhargram, came in the grip of the Maoist movement.

“Killings had become common. People would go missing. Places would be set on fire. This went on till the end of 2010. I felt deeply scarred. In 2011 I held an exhibition titled ‘Roots’ at the Ganges Art Gallery in Kolkata. It depicted the suffering of the people caught in the movement, and the tremendous destruction of public property,” Mr. Mandal told The Hindu.

He then set up Chalchitra Academy, an artists’ collective, and in 2018 returned to Jhargram to make a nearby settlement called Lalbazar, a village inhabited by less than 100 people belonging to the shy Lodha tribe, his second home. There he began holding regular workshops, with the help of associates in Kolkata and also indigenous artists, to train villagers in various forms of traditional art, including dokra, katum-katum and kantha stitching. Today, Lalbazar, given the sobriquet of ‘Khwaabgaon’ (village of dreams) by an admirer of Mr. Mandal’s efforts, is frequently visited by tourists coming to Jhargram. Art has not only added to the income of the villagers but also decorated the walls of village homes.

By late 2023 Mr. Mandal had extended his efforts six kilometres away to another village, Konedoba, populated by the Santhal tribe. Today, 10 more surrounding villages in this wooded part of West Bengal, that is, 12 villages in all, are part of what has become a network of art. Mr. Mandal wants to name the entire project — of empowering villagers through art — Khwaabgaon.

“Every weekend we have drawing and handicraft classes held by graduates of the art college, and every month we have a workshop on indigenous art, terracotta, dokra, patachitra, and so on. Recently, we had a workshop on 3D painting conducted by an artist from America. The classes and workshops are joined by people from all the 12 villages,” Mr. Mandal said.

Apart from Lalbazar and Konedoba, the villages connected to the art project now include Gangadharpur, Uransol, Radhanagar, Keudi, Savaytan, Jorakhali, Arjundahar, Suyabansha, Darkhuli and Khaira Suli.

“This region is my canvas now and its people and trees are my paint and brush. The Khwaabgaon project has no help from the government or corporate sector — it runs entirely on crowdfunding. As an artist, I am doing whatever I can to bring about development in these villages, something the government should have done. You can call this a silent protest, a political statement on my part,” Mr. Mandal said.

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