The Amerikas Colloquium

30 January, 18:00, Room L-155
Institut für Ethnologie
Oettingenstrasse 67

Daniel Dumas, M.A. (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München):

Beaded Dreams: Indigenous Representations of Identity, Environment, and Resistance on present-day Turtle Island

Beading is a practice that embodies culture, knowledge, and teachings, connecting individuals with both past traditions and often inviting beaders into a strong and vibrant community. It also reflects an attachment to place and the environment. The Metis Nation, for instance, is commonly referred to as the floral beadwork people. As suggested by recent Indigenous scholarship, beading is a practice embodying a broader worldview, which understands the relation of people to the environment as a being-with rather than mastery over. This talk will seek to illustrate how young Indigenous beaders on present-day Turtle Island (specifically in Canada) are living and learning their culture through this visual practice, and as such are creating representations of themselves, their peoples, and their environments. Additionally, the ways in which beading constitutes an act of resistance to the cultural homogenization of the global mainstream society will be explored.

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