What comes after a land acknowledgement? A new Madison College art exhibit invites visitors to explore that question through the work of Indigenous artists reflecting on their relationships with Wisconsin’s lands and waters.
“Indigenous Wisconsin: Beyond Acknowledgement” brings together Indigenous artists whose work explores reciprocal relationships with the natural world through material, memory, language, storytelling and cultural practices.
The exhibit’s featured work is “She Gives to Us,” a painting by Ho-Chunk and White Earth Ojibwe artist Christopher Sweet. The piece depicts an Indigenous family gathered near a river, expressing appreciation for the resources and connections the land and water provide.
“Although the painting features an Indigenous family in the forefront, the painting is about the land and the water,” Sweet said in a press release. “They gather near the riverfront in appreciation of what the water and land provides. She carries the memories of our ancestors’ travels and connects us. She is a source of survival, shelter and nourishment.”
Sweet said the painting also reflects the responsibility to care for the land and water in return.
“Her strength is undeniable; let us offer her the same care she extends to us,” he said.
Madison College Organizational Impact and Culture and the Madison College Gallery at Truax are hosting the exhibition, which runs Nov. 9 through Dec. 11. A community reception will take place Nov. 12 from 5 to 7 p.m.
