Circle of Indigenous Arts event aims to unite cultures
The Native American cultures of the Midwest were brought together for the "Circle of Indigenous Arts" show on Nov. 16-17 at the Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture and Lifeways.
The show is an annual event that started in 1998, before the Ziibiwing Center opened. The event is held the weekend before Thanksgiving every year.
There is a competition for best in show among fine art, music and dance artists. The overall winner is awarded $2,500. However, the purpose of the show is more than just competition.
The Ziibiwing Center was full of Native American culture -- paintings and pictures filled the walls. The gift shop was full of Native American themed toys and knickknacks and Tribal music was playing in the main lobby.
Artists set up their work on display tables next to each other for potential buyers to view.
Shirley Brauker, a Central Michigan University alumna, was one of the artists who had her art on display.
"This (event) brings people together of different tribes and allows us to share our artwork with the community," Brauker said.
Brauker said she enjoys telling a story with ledger drawings and pottery. She said she also drew on the paperwork from the 1889 imprisonment of Native Americans, making that piece an antique. On the paper, she drew animals and plants, with the written paperwork filling in the background.
She said she likes to teach art history to youth and has taught a Native American art sampler class at CMU. She said art is an educational tool because it has historical value to it.
Brauker said she has been participating in shows and workshops for more than 40 years. She said she has traveled across the nation teaching art and the art history. It's her "lifestyle," she said.
Shannon Martin, the director of the Ziibiwing Center, saw the event as an opportunity to showcase Native artistic talents.
"We offer (the event) because it provides an important platform for North American Indian artists to demonstrate and sell their work," Martin said. "The event provides an opportunity for master adult artists to inspire youth to express their own talents."
Martin said the event also showcases bilingual authors and poets and gives them the chance to share their work.
Stephanie Jackson is an artist from Mount Pleasant who said she enjoys making block prints of Michigan animals. She also enjoyed the many talents showcased at the event.
Jackson said many of the artists have been crafting their skills since their youth. The tradition is passed down from each generation, creating the history of Native art.
Another artist, Marcella Hadden, is a photographer from Mount Pleasant who has her own mini studio in the Ziibiwng Center.
Hadden said she enjoys photography because of the everlasting memories and the initial "wow factor" after looking at what she just took.
"I had 25 clients signed up (for a photo shoot) so I decided to do it here," Hadden said. "It brings people to the center and gets them to look at the art."
She said art brings unity to everybody involved in it, not just the Native American culture.
At the event, the art piece many people were talking about was a bison sculpture made of $40,000 worth of copper. The piece was selling for $150,000.
Martin said the bison will probably win best in show.
The sense of unity between communities that the event created was Martin's main goal.
"We hope that the community appreciates the opportunity to have face to face contact with the master artists who traveled here form across the Midwest," Martin said.
