April Lindala
Boozhoo. She:kon. Greetings.
Welcome to the Great Lakes Indigenous Art, Education, and Healing (GLIAEH) project’s online exhibition and art resources website. This online space is dedicated to the completed creative work by American Indian students from Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College (KBOCC) and Northern Michigan University (NMU). This multi-faceted project was a National Endowment for the Arts-funded endeavor and a collaborative partnership between KBOCC, the NMU Center for Native American Studies, and the NMU School of Art and Design. I have been in awe of the finished creative works by the student participants. This is their space to be celebrated for their completed creative works.
The seeds for this distinct project have been growing in my mind for several years; this project stems from my belief that the making of creative arts has the potential to contribute positively to one’s individual healing process as well as a collective community healing journey. Whether you shape clay, weave black ash, sew fabric, carve wood, or stitch beads, you are fashioning mindful moments and giving of yourself to a material item. For many American Indians, these materials and the act of making are in direct relationship to the earth and to Creation itself. This is why I believe that the gift of making contains healing properties. It is my hope that the GLIAEH project planted seeds for students who believe similarly and/or generated inspiration to continue to do healing work.
A sincere and generous thank you to those who helped this project come to life! Tracy Wascom of NMU’s School of Art and Design for being present and going above and beyond throughout the entire project, Michelle Reed of MReed Designs for the on-going inspiration and motivation, KBOCC President Lori Ann Sherman for trusting in my vision, the GLIAEH project instructors for their skills, talents, and willingness to share, and the entire GLIAEH planning team for ensuring all of the details were covered. Additionally, I must acknowledge and thank Dr. Erica Goff, Kathy Frazier, CNAS director Amber Morseau, the NMU School of Art and Design for use of the art studio space and website space, NMU’s Teaching and Learning Center for preparing the online educational space, NMU’s Audio Visual team for the technological assistance, and last, but never least, thank you to Karen Ann Hoffman, 2020 NEA Heritage Fellow, for evaluating the GLIAEH project.
April E. Lindala, Professor Native American Studies, GLIAEH Project Lead
Lori Sherman
Bozhoo,
Welcome from Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College (KBOCC). My name is Ozawan, my English name is Lori Ann Sherman, and I am from the Makwa (Bear Clan). I was born and raised in Zeba, Michigan, and am a member of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. I am the President of KBOCC, and we are honored to be a part of The Great Lakes Indigenous Art, Education, and Healing Project (GLIAEH).
Here at KBOCC, we love to partner with other colleges and work together. Working with NMU is always a pleasure, and we say Miigwech, Thank You to NMU for involving KBOCC with this unique healing project.
The in-depth workshops and the additional online workshops are absolutely wonderful to view.
The teachers we have that have participated in this project have been amazing, as you will see.
We had plans to do all the workshops live and travel to NMU and KBOCC, and share our spaces. Due to Covid, we did change our plans somewhat but still provided a very thoughtful experience for our students during this difficult time.
I truly believe art is therapy, and we encourage you to go through the online exhibit hosted by NMU's Center for Native American Studies and School of Art and Design.
Miigwech to our sponsor, the National Endowment for the Arts.
Lori Ann Sherma, President Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College
