Page 8
Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
November 8, 2017
The Growth of Tamánwit, a community of member artists
By Gabby Robinson, for the
W.S. Community Action Team
(The following is a narrative of
the development of Tamánwit: A
Community of Warm Springs Art-
ists.)
By early springs 2014 a dozen
Warm Springs community mem-
bers had held several informal
meetings to discuss the possibility
of starting an artisans’ coopera-
tive.
A co-op enables people to work
together to increase profits and
improve their businesses
collaboratively, which ultimately
eases stress related to business and
financial management.
From those early 2014 infor-
mal meetings, a steering commit-
tee was established to help Warm
Springs’ artists find opportunities
for community members to sell
their work and share their tradi-
tional arts and crafts with others.
Thus, an artisan’s cooperative
was formed.
In 2016—in collaboration of
the Warm Springs Community Ac-
tion Team—the group began hav-
ing regular meetings and work-
shops, attended by up to 25 com-
munity members.
What began as informal meet-
ings, now has a Facebook group
called Warm Springs Artisans Com-
munity, and a page titled Tamánwit:
A Community of Warm Springs
Artists with over 120 members
each.
In the summer 2017 the group
selected its name, and its partici-
pants have now elected official
board members who are dedicated
to help the organization become a
legal entity, in collaboration with
the Community Action Team.
On Tamánwit’s official website
you can view artists who helped
Tamánwit become a reality. You
can also see some of their beauti-
ful work. The website is:
warmspringsartists.org
Tamánwit names board
Warm Springs artists create
many different types of art includ-
ing beadwork, huckleberry baskets,
ceramics, cedar root baskets, pine
needle baskets, quilts, traditional
ribbon shirts and wing dresses, tra-
ditional jingle dresses, paintings,
deer hide bags and moccasins, and
buckskin dresses.
After the success of artists dur-
ing the solar eclipse events, and the
Community Action Team Outdoor
Market, participants decided to
take the next step forward and hold
the election of Tamánwit’s board
members in late September of this
year.
Six individuals were elected:
Gerald Danzuka, Shayleen
Eaglespeaker, Marge Kalama,
Tamera Coffee, Aurolyn Stwyer,
and Tamera Moody.
They held their second board
meeting October 23, resulting in
the appointment of official posi-
tions for board members. Gerald
Danzuka was chosen president;
Shayleen Eaglespeaker, vice presi-
dent; Tamera Moody, treasurer.
The board, in collaboration with
the Community Action Team staff,
is committed and dedicated to-
wards the development of
Tamánwit.
Documentary confronts
use of Native mascots
A film screening at Central
Oreogn Community College
confronts use of Native
Ameircan mascots.
More Than a Word, a docu-
mentary about the controver-
sial use of Native Americans
as sports mascots, will screen
at COCC in Madras from
noon to 1:30 p.m. on Monday,
November 13; and at the Bend
campus on Thursday, Novem-
ber 30.
This film is free and open
to the public. A facilitated dis-
cussion will follow.
In M o r e T h a n a Wo r d :
Documentarian brothers John
and Kenn Little take an in-
depth look at the growing
movement to change the name
of the Washington Redskins
football team—referred to as
the “R*dskins” by the film-
makers.
The film also addresses the
overall controversy involving
Native American sports team
mascots, and its impact on in-
digenous peoples.
“The significance of the film
is that it enlightens and educates
non-Native people on a very
controversial subject,” said
Michelle Cary, COCC’s Native
American program coordinator.
“This film seeks to shed light
on the fact that Native Ameri-
cans are real people who are
alive and productive citizens of
today, not just symbols of past
history.”
For information on this
event, contact Michelle Cary,
Native American program co-
ordinator, at 541-318-3782. Or:
mcary@cocc.edu
The progress made thus far
could not have proceeded so
quickly without the assistance of
First Nations Development
Institute’s Native Arts Initiative
grant funds.
FNDI provided the seed
money for this historical and
timely undertaking.
The board members’ first pri-
ority lies in finding efficient ways
to make Tamánwit a self-suffi-
cient legal entity.
This includes writing articles of
incorporation and bylaws, defin-
ing the terms, roles and responsi-
bilities for board members; devel-
oping requirements for participat-
ing community members; and
determining what types of part-
ners and grants the organization
could benefit from.
Currently the organization is
working towards facilitating eco-
nomic opportunity for Warm
Springs Indian Reservation art-
ists; providing educational oppor-
tunities for aspiring Native artists;
and increasing public knowledge
and understanding of the tribal
arts and crafts of the Columbia
River Plateau.
While Tamánwit still has a long
road ahead, it has proven that it
holds the motivation and willing-
ness to empower community
members with artistic knowledge
and business opportunity.
If you’re interested in view-
ing the fruits of Warm Springs
artists’ labor, visit Art Adven-
ture gallery in Madras during
the month of November where
six artists are showcasing their
work.
Tamánwit at Art Adventure
Painting by Emily Courtney, on display with other tribal
pieces at the Art Adventure Gallery.
Warm Springs artists are fea-
tured through November at the
Art Adventure Gallery in Ma-
dras. The show is Tamánwit: A
Community of Warm Springs
Artists.
The show features works by
Plateau Indian Art on Main Street, Joseph
The Josephy Center for Arts and
Culture just received a large grant
from the Oregon Community Foun-
dation to engage a Plateau Indian
artist to add his or her work to the
bronze streetscape that the city of
Joseph now displays.
The City of Joseph is named
after Nez Perce leader Chief Jo-
seph, as is the annual rodeo. In the
past several years, local foundries
and galleries, working with city of-
ficials, have developed a streetscape
that features a dozen bronze sculp-
tures. The state of Oregon recently
designated the city an art district.
Four of the dozen bronze sculp-
tures currently on Main Street de-
pict Indians; none of them are the
work of tribal artists.
The Josephy Center wrote the
grant. And along with tribal repre-
sentatives they will select an artist
to do the work.
The Josephy Center is named
after Alvin M. Josephy Jr., the noted
historian of the Nez Perce and
long-time advocate for American
Indians.
The center is home to a library
of books that Josephy collected
over his long career. Many of the
books deal with Plateau Indian
culture and history, and students
and writers come frequently to
explore Indian themes and share
their work with local and visiting
audiences.
The Center has a large exhibit
space, and for the last four years
has devoted a June show to In-
dian art and culture, including a
show of “gift art” curated by the
Nez Perce National Historical
Park; another of Crows Shadow
art prints; and this summer one
of historical photos of the Nez
Perce gathered from the National
Park, the University of Idaho, and
the Wallowa History Center.
The connection of the city, the
Oregon Community Foundation,
and the Josephy Center promises
an exciting turn for Indian artists
and Indian interpretation of his-
tory and place.
Tribal artists interested in the
opportunity have until January 15
to send resumes and portfolios to
the center. The project calls for 3-
dimensional public art, but is not
restricted to bronze sculpture—the
medium is artist’s choice.
Up to three artists will then each
receive $1,000 and six weeks to
develop proposals for a sculpture
to stand in the Josephy Center
courtyard, or on Joseph’s adjacent
Main Street. One artist will then
receive one-third of the $25,000
award, and have a year to com-
plete the project.
Interested artists are encouraged
to call the Josephy Center, 541-
432-0505, and talk with Director
Cheryl Coughlan or library head
Rich Wandschneider. Or email:
rich.wandschneider@gmail.com
The trees represent the 50 states,
plus the District of Columbia and
U.S. territories. The ornaments
from Warm Springs will be on the
Oregon tree.
The lighting ceremony will be the
evening of November 30. You can
watch the event live on the internet
at thenationaltree.org
The show will then re-air on the
Hallmark Channel on Monday, De-
cember 4. The trees will be on dis-
play from December 1 through
January 1.
The National Christmas Tree
Lighting is one of the country’s old-
est holiday traditions. President
Calvin Coolidge did the first light-
ing in 1923.
Ornaments headed
for America
Celebrates display
he tribes this winter will have
ornaments in the America Cel-
ebrates lights display in Washington,
D.C., this winter.
The ornaments—representing
the three tribes of the War m
Springs Reservation—were cre-
ated by the teachers and students
of the Culture and Heritage Lan-
guage program.
They worked on the colorful
decorations at the Warm Springs
Academy Rise & Shine program,
in cooperation with the High
Desert Museum.
Culture and Heritage last week
shipped the ornaments to the Na-
tional Park Service in Washington,
D.C.
The handcrafted ornaments will
be among those adorning the 56
America Celebrates trees at the
nation’s capital.
Anita Jackson, Aurolyn Stwyer,
John Finch, Pamela Louis,
Beatrice Lopez, and other
Warm Springs artists. Stop by
and check it out, Art Adventure
Gallery, 185 SE Fifth Street in
Madras.
Tree decorations as
created by the Culture and
Heritage Language
program. The ornaments
are clear spheres that can
be filled with decorations.
The Language students
and teachers then painted
the outside.
Dave McMechan/Spilyay