Introduction and Mission Statement of the artist
My project entitled “The World’s Longest Native American Painting” will be an art piece depicting the dimension I feel from women I know or women I will create through my research of the tribes found in the United States. Anyone who wants to acknowledge an important woman or women of their tribe can work with me to include them in the piece.
My project is not really a “historical” art piece; instead it will highlight elements of culture of many tribes and will inevitably include historical information. In the same way, this is not a “political” art piece, but it will include something of the politics around these women’s lives. The project includes both women who have passed away as well as living people. In this way the piece can honor some of the important women I have known who are no longer with us, and at the same time this process will allow me to grow as I do my research. I am looking to portray something of their character and the humanity I feel from women.
My hope for this project is to dispel some of the clichés around Native American lives and at the same time demonstrate my deepest respect for Native American women. I want the viewer to wonder about these women’s lives and I will include writings about the images I present as the work goes along. Inside the project I will show many aspects of the lives of Native American women including their relationships to family, spirituality, our cosmologies, our communities, our cultures. I am interested in showing my ideas about the closeness built by women of mothers and daughters, their compassion with our babies, their ability to incorporate culture into all aspects of their lives, as well as many other issues and ideas.
Above all this is a piece of art. I have studied many forms of art and art history. I have spent many years involved with Contemporary Native American Art and have read extensively about many Native artists. It is very important that my viewers understand this art piece is from a Native American perspective—my perspective--so with that in mind understand that this painting is already a finished image in my head. It has always been a part of my process to start my paintings when the image is finished in my head, or at least mostly finished. This is a very special piece because I see it in my head (dreams) and now I just need to make it all fit; like a puzzle would be.
Some may think Native American Art should be considered like any other artistic genre, however, it is undeniable that our art is unique and from my personal experience it has always been most enjoyable to embrace our uniqueness. My art has elements found in most Native American Art like my use of the human figure. I also draw spaces which can look flattened; which is similar to many Native artists work. My color selections can be reminiscent of other Native artists as well, but my work has been honed and developed over many years and I am proud of current work. Native American Art is unique, which is a good thing, and I find our arts to be some of the most imaginative, wondrous, creative art in the world.
The Mission
The mission of my newest work is to educate people about Native American’s of the past, present and future, through the creation of one painting which will for the first time visually connect our Indigenous presence throughout the fifty United States. This painting will take approximately five years due to the physical act of painting over one hundred feet of canvas, as well as associated traveling , exhibiting, researching many tribes and the website development. This project is the result of many years of personal growth and personal growth as an artist. Through this work the viewer will also see the dimension and gifts of many Native people with connecting threads of our inherent balance with nature and our cosmologies. My vision encompasses the worthiness and the role of Native American Women; their humanity. My painting will show several layers of cultural wealth through women’s cultural dresses, their arts and crafts, and through their cultures.
My work over the last twenty years has been about the role we Indian people play in our different cultures. Over the years my interests in Native perspectives and tribal traditions and life ways have drawn me into many levels of cultural artistic research. Sometimes cultures are similar to mine (I am Anishinabe; Ojibwe) and sometimes they are vastly different. It’s all amazing and interesting. My core cultural belief’s come from my interactions with my elders, traditional teachers, modern scholars and family and friends. Our roles are defined by traditions and cultural ideals which are passed down as cultural teachings through the generations. In modern Native life both the men’s and women’s roles include cultural teachings, however, my work is about the importance of matrilineal teachers who pass on cultural lessons.
Matriarchy was an essential part of our past, as well as the idea of caring for our elders, so over time I challenged myself to paint images that connect these concepts, then I merged them with the role of the Traditional Native women of today. Later, my images of Elder women became icons of many ideas of the essence of Native women and my respect for their lives. My great grandmother’s life struggles and history from the late 1800’s through the depression, as well as, her ability to provide for her family has lead me to understand the depth of Native women’s struggles. Late in her life the development of our tribe’s Federal recognition left her and her family abandoned and considered “decendants” instead of rightfully being acknowledged as tribal members. Because of these circumstances my work has always had a personal attitude about enrollment issues. My grandmother followed a traditional path, she spoke her Native language, she taught her family the right from wrong, carried on the belief’s of her tribal people, and was a very accomplished Eastern Woodland basketmaker.
In recognition of my grandmother and later my mother’s struggles I developed “The Women’s Council,1996-2006,” a series of images that incorporates elements of the traditional women which includes aspects of ceremonial objects and places, traditional regalia (stylized), and connectedness between women and community. As the series developed the iconic female figures evolved to include babies and elder women. For me, these additional figures created the “circle” which demonstrates the past, present and future. These concepts continue throughout my work.
By 2004-2006 the work I was developing became more in line with the Traditional Women’s regalia, the faces and shapes were more realistic, and my drawings were strengthening my skill level. In early images from the series I worked on many drawings and paintings of elders, always exploring the way figures worked together, creating regalia and dress designs, as well as working on how the aging process changed each figure. I had begun to embrace the image of the Elder Traditional women and created another series entitled, “Caring for Our Elders.” During the spring of 2006 I started my painting entitled, “The Women of the Great Lakes,” which depicts younger women holding on to and caring for the elders. As an acknowledgement to elder traditional women and out of respect for them I painted each figure wearing “white buckskin” dresses.
In the summer of 2006 I completed the painting, “The Women of the Great Lakes,’ while in Washington, DC, at the NMAI, and later the hand painted, one of a kind giclee print was very successful commercially for me. During the last few years other pieces from the Caring for the Elders series have been developed including “The Women of the Northwest,” “The Women of the Pueblos,” “The Generations of Women,” “Women of the Four Directions.” Each one informs the viewer of the depth of culture and the distinct uniqueness of each of the tribe’s iconography. Each painting had its own challenges and as I worked through the challenges I learned more about the process of art itself. Over time this process has strengthened my skills; my thinking.
“The World’s Longest Native American Painting” project will depict many cultural aspects of Native American Women in one painting. This is my attempt to show the depth of vision within Native American Art. This is for the young Native American artists of the future. I have been offered an opportunity to create my “Longest Native American Painting “ project and with the help and encouragement of my partner Jerome Dupont we are going forward. This piece is dedicated to the loving memories of the late Joseph Dupont, my father-in-law who was a deep admirer of Native American culture and arts.
Daniel Ramirez, MFA
January 7, 2011