Survivance & Sovereignty on Turtle Island
The exhibition addresses the histories and present-day realities of the first people of this continent through contemporary Native American art. Turtle Island is the name given to North America by the Anishinabek, the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois), and the Lenape—some of the Indigenous people of this region. The artists address survivance: a term that emphasizes both cultural survival and resistance in the face of hundreds of years of genocide and mass atrocities. By using art to communicate the impact that genocide has upon Indigenous people on Turtle Island–as well as its connections to the Holocaust—we can understand that these egregious crimes of attempted erasure are not outliers but part of a continuum.
Curated by Danyelle Means (Oglala Lakota) and QCC Art & Design faculty member, Kat Griefen, in collaboration with students and alumni from the QCC Gallery and Museum Studies as well as KHC fellowship program.
Click here for the accompanying library guide. This LibGuide provides resources for anyone wanting to learn more about some of the complex issues pertaining to Indigenous history, culture, and identity in the United States and Canada. The topics covered are nuanced and complicated. The LibGuide offers a wonderful starting point for anyone hoping to begin to better understand the lives of those who originally called this land their home.
Click here to watch the recorded events. The KHC regularly hosts programs that introduce audiences to histories of indigenous people on this continent and the concept of “Survivance.” These events build upon the Center’s longstanding tradition of using the lessons of the Holocaust to teach about other communities who have experienced genocide and mass atrocities. This playlist also includes lectures from the KHC’s 2018-19 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) colloquium, “Engaging with Native American Cultural Survival, Resistance and Allyship,” and this accompanying art exhibition.
Image Credits: Mirror Shield conceived by Cannupa Hanska Luger and Rob Wilson Photography, Turtle Island direction action, Standing Rock, ND, Thanksgiving Day 2016, police in reflection
CUNY TV Episode of “Urban U” featuring Kat Griefen and artist Cannupa Hanska Luger (begins at 15:45)
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