This double portrait by artist Judy Jashinsky is of her great-grandmother. Courtesy image.
By Pat Stinson
A call for artwork by Native American artists living in Michigan concludes on Sept. 10, the deadline to apply to the “First Americans” art exhibition to be held in November and December. The Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts in Manistee is seeking artists for its first-ever show of works exclusively by Native Americans.
Planned to coincide with National American Indian Heritage Month in November, the Nov. 8-Dec. 31 art exhibition in RRCA’s Hardy Hall will honor and celebrate the artistry of Native Americans working in all types of visual media. A reception for the artists will be held 6-8 p.m., Nov. 13 and is open to the public.
In a release, organizers stated: “We are looking to honor and celebrate the broad range of artistic expression by Native American artists. This includes painting, sculpture, photography, prints, ceramics, fashion design, poetry, storytelling, music, dance, video, and installation, which might include several categories of expression.”
Artwork does not need to directly reflect the artist’s cultural heritage.
Two individuals approached the Ramsdell with the idea for the exhibition. One is a Native American artist and the other is a member of Manistee Area Racial Justice and Diversity Initiative.
Co-chairs of the event are Lisa Allen and Judy Jashinksy.
“I was so pleased to be asked to help organize and participate in ‘First Americans’,” Jashinksy said. “As a recent member of the Stockbridge-Muncee (Mohican) Tribe, I have a special appreciation of the role Native Americans have in this country.”
Jashinsky is a visual artist and owner of Pines of Arcadia, an artist residency studio and gallery in the Arcadia area. A double portrait of her great-grandmother will be included in the exhibition.
“The image of her in Native American clothing is based on research of what she would have worn had she not been removed from her tribal life to be educated in the ways of the White Man,” Jashinsky said. “The other image is based on a photograph of her that hung on the wall in the farmhouse on the reservation.”
The Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts is located at 101 Maple Street, on the ancestral land of the Anishinaabe people, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
For information and an application, go to https://forms.gle/h6FK2m4uQJpmvf9g6
