Rainbow Bridge is far away included in IN THE SPIRIT
My painting, Rainbow Bridge is far away, is part of IN THE SPIRIT at the Washington State Historical Society in Tacoma. I'm glad to be included again! It is so good to have my work among other work from indigenous artists across the United States and Canada. It includes those with contemporary as well as traditional art practices.
About Rainbow Bridge is far away:
We simultaneously leave behind home as we forge a new one. Nostalgia is framed in terms of its etymology: the return to home (nostos) and longing (algia). Nostalgia wraps itself in imagination, in romanticism, in sadness. The Navajo word for this sort of nostalgia is ch’ééná, which is more of a heartbreak when “a way of life is gone forever.” My own construction of home is unavoidably linked to my Navajo and Southern identity—identities that can be highly imagined and self-determined. Leaving home demands choices be made about what to bring with us and what to leave behind.
There was so much loss in saying good bye to my grandmother, my Masoni. Her strength, wisdom, and love was everything that is Navajo. As my family packed up her home, the walks down the hallway reminded me to walk in beauty, that she is now walking in beauty, that she is enjoying walks with my Che in a golden desert.
IN THE SPIRIT
30 June - 12 August 2018
Washington State Historical Society
1911 Pacific Avenue
Tacoma, Washington
98402