Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters
Image: A view of the new Outside In Gallery. Photo credit: Tim Mickleburgh
The current exhibition in the Outside In Gallery, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters, is the culmination of more than a year of collaboration between MoNA and the two co-curators: Patricia Christine Aqiimuk Paul, Esq. and Candice Wilson ~ Quatz’tenaut. This blog post will situate the exhibition in a larger context and illustrate the myriad ways that this project is extending beyond the gallery walls to remember, honor, and bring awareness to the thousands of Native women and girls who go missing or are murdered each year.
Image: Jonathan Labillois (Mi’gmaq from Listuguj Quebec), “Still Dancing.” Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters draws attention to crimes perpetrated against native women in the U.S. Like other earlier projects, among which is the “REDress Project” started in Winnipeg, Canada in 2011 by artist and Métis Nation member Jaime Black, the exhibition calls attention to the lack of reporting, data, and justice for Native American women.
Image: Safiuchi (Nooksack 306), “Washed Away.” Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
This exhibition was created by two inspired curators, and we wanted to share a little bit of information about both of them. The Honorable Patricia Paul is Kikiktagruk Inupiat (northern Alaskan Eskimo). She received her Bachelor of Arts in 1993 from Antioch University, Seattle, Washington. She completed her law degree in 1998, earning a Juris Doctorate from Seattle University School of Law. She completed post-graduate studies at the JFK School of Government, at Harvard University in 2005. She has been invited to be a guest speaker or lecture in Austria, the Kingdom of Bhutan, Brazil, Chile, Finland, Guatemala, and Sweden. She has presided as an Appellate Tribal Judge for the Confederated Tribes of Grande Ronde, Oregon, USA, since 2012. She has also been a member of Northwest Inupiat Dancers and was on the Board of Directors for Longhouse Media in 2014. Paul is the Food Editor of the La Conner Weekly News.
Candice Wilson Quatz'tenaut is a member of the Lummi Nation and is currently the Tribal Policy Director for the Washington State Department of Health, where she works collaboratively on processes and policies with tribes and public health partners. Candice is the former Executive Director of the Lhaq’temish Foundation and former Tribal & Community Liaison to the North Sound Accountable Community of Health. She has served on the Ferndale School District Board of Directors for four years, and Lummi Indian Business Council for nine years as an elected official for Lummi Nation--serving three of those years as the Vice Chairwoman. Honorary recognition of the National Indian Health Board - Community Service Organization Award 2021 and the Whatcom Family & Community Network - Community Builder Award 2021.
Image (left to right): Amanda Smith (artist), Gabby Lon (poet), Safiuchi (artist), Pat Paul (curator), Kevin Paul (artist), Alan Smith (poet), and Candice Wilson (curator). Photo credit: BobFather
Image: Nikanot Sylvia Tatshama Peasley (Enrolled Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation; descended from Chief Joseph Band of Nez Perce, Moses Columbia, Umatilla, and San Poil), “her red dress.” Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
Patricia and Candice’s vision has been realized in three interconnected modes: through the exhibition in the Outside In Gallery, through a series of interactive displays in the Expression Exchange, and through a wide range of both physical and digital educational programming.
The art in the exhibition is the core of the project and reflects the strength, resilience, and determination of our Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls survivors and their families. Featured in the exhibition are works by Amanda Smith (Nooksack), Qatalina Jackie Schaeffer (Iñupiaq), Cindy Chischilly (Diné), Jonathan Labillois (Mi’gmaq from Listuguj Quebec), Kevin Paul (Swinomish Indian Tribal Community), Nikanot Sylvia Tatshama Peasley (Enrolled Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation; descended from Chief Joseph Band of Nez Perce, Moses Columbia, Umatilla, and San Poil), and Safiuchi (Nooksack 306). The exhibition also includes a film titled: Missing and Murdered Women and Girls, composed by Antone George (Lummi) for the West Shore Canoe Family, directed by Mark Nichols, and produced by Children of the Setting Sun. “Long victims of violence, native women and their families will no longer be silent. Their stories are being told,” state co-curators Patricia Christine Aqiimuk Paul and Candice Wilson ~ Quatz’tenaut. “The art in this exhibition aims at raising awareness of the murder rates and foster hope of the return of our stolen sisters.”
Image: The Expression Exchange launched on October 22nd, 2022. Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
In order to deepen and extend the visitor experience, we created a series of interactive displays in the new Expression Exchange space in the upstairs galleries. Here, visitors can engage more deeply with the content in the exhibition by responding to prompts in creative and reflective ways. This space also includes a resource table and a listening station for the MoNA Moment’s Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls podcast with an anonymous survivor.
Image: Resource table in the Expression Exchange. Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
The project extends far beyond the works in the Outside In Gallery to engage the community through a range of programs designed to foster awareness through representation, and create communities of inclusion, mutual support, and respect. We hope you will join us for the following events associated with this exhibition:
Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters Poetry Symposium: November 12, 2:00-4:00pm Planned in conjunction with Native American Heritage Month will feature poets of Native Heritage from the region.
Virtual Curator & Artist Talk for the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters Exhibition: January 21, 2:00-3:15pm Moderated by the co-curators will feature three artists in the exhibition highlighting different perspectives.
Humanities Washington: Rena Priest, Washington State Poet Laureate: February 3, 6:00-7:00pm As a way to mark the end of the exhibition, MoNA will host Rena Priest, the Washington State Poet Laureate and a member of the Lhaq’temish (Lummi) Nation.
Image: Amanda Smith (Nooksack), “Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women's Basket.” Photo Credit: Tim Mickleburgh
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: Honoring Our Stolen Sisters will be on display until February 5, 2023 and more information on the programming, exhibition, and additional resources related to MMIWG can be found on www.monamuseum.org/outside-in-gallery-mmiwg. As always, admission to Museum exhibitions is free thanks to our supporters and members.
This exhibition is made possible through generous sponsorship from the following organizations:
