Winter Quarter II January, 2024
Hello & Welcome
By Laura VerMeulen
"The Native arts field is rich..."
The Native arts field is rich with the talent and thoughtfulness of Native artists and creative makers who bring with them the full range of lived experiences. Regardless of where artists live, where they were raised, or the degree to which they are familiar with their languages and cultures, it is all part of the real history of Native peoples. We hope that you enjoy the newsletter.,
Greetings from the House of Welcome Cultural Arts Center! As part of our new era, we will be bringing you more regular newsletters. We hope that the newsletters can provide readers with a review of activities and accomplishments, as well as a place to get a preview of upcoming events and activities. We will also share a few short educational pieces that might highlight key issues at the forefront of Native arts and share behind-the-scenes writing about the work we are doing.
“We hope [to] provide readers with a review of activities and accomplishments, as well as a place to get a preview of upcoming events and activities.”
Lyn Dennis, Tribal Liaison
Elected tribal Official academy
A Steering Committee was established including: Jamestown S’Klallam Chairman Ron Allen; Tulalip Tribes Chairwoman Teri Gobin; Lummi Indian Business Council Member Henry Cagey; and Squaxin Island Chairman Kris Peters. Through their guidance we were able to draft an agenda for the Training and curriculum (an 85-page book double-sided was produced).
The Evergreen State College collaborated with the Native Nations Institute, and “Nation Building” which is the central focus of their programs. They are founded by the Udall Foundation and the University of Arizona. The program includes such topics as the foundation and meaning of ‘Sovereignty’ to understanding your Tribal Constitution; How laws are made, including the knowledge of Congress; and the significance of tribal relationships with state and federal governments.
10 Tribes participated in the 2 ½ day Training including: Jamestown S’Klallam; Lummi; Sauk-Suiattle; Suquamish; Squaxin Island; Samish Nation; Confederated Tribes of Umatilla; Confederated Tribes of Colville; Cowlitz; and Nooksack Tribe. What was challenging was this was the first of its kind of training, so it was a great effort to recruit the Tribal Leaders.
There was a reception for Washington State Agency Tribal Liaisons and the Tribal Leaders to have a meet and greet, and a good way to network with each other.
A specials thanks to the Tulalip Board of Directors for their overall support and the Tulalip Resort Casino Management and Staff did a great job!
We plan to have the 2nd Annual Elected Tribal Official Academy Training on February 27-29, 2024, at the ilani Resort Casino in Ridgefield, Wa., and hosted by the Cowlitz Tribe. This time we will be providing our own training curriculum through The Evergreen State College. The Steering Committee is also allowing Tribal staff to attend, only by the approval of their Tribal Council.
Training Brought Leaders of Ten Tribal Nations to Tulalip
By Lyn Dennis
Tulalip, WA. —A new program, The Elected Tribal Official Academy Training by The Evergreen State College took place on Feb. 7 to 9, 2023, at the Tulalip Resort Casino and the Tulalip Gathering Hall. Elected leaders from The Tulalip Tribes, the Lummi Nation, the Nooksack Tribe, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, the Cowlitz Tribe, the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of Colville, the Confederated Tribes of Umatilla, the Suquamish Tribe, and the Squaxin Island Tribe were in attendance.
Lummi Indian Business Council member Henry Cagey told the elected leaders of tribal nations assembled, “As we look at the lay of the land with our leaders, we want them to be well informed and well equipped for any issue
We want good strong leaders to lead our people.”
that they face,” said Cagey, a member of the steering committee for this training. “We want good strong leaders to lead our people. And that they be able to stand up for their Tribe and speak for their people.”
Evergreen’s Tribal Relations, Arts and Cultures Division collaborated with the Native Nations Institute of the University of Arizona, and with a core team of leaders, including Cagey, who served as the steering committee for this training.
advanced tribal relations training certificate
We have been working and assisting with the development of the curriculum for the 12 CEU Certificate Program for State and Local Government agencies, including Tribal Liaisons. It is comprised of three classes in cooperation with the Department of Enterprise Services and plan to launch in the near future.
Classes:
- How We Got Here – The Resilience of American Indian Tribes Moving Through Time
- NOW - Tribal Governments Today: Federal, Tribal, and State Inter-governmental Relationships as Models of Collaboration and Resilience
- ALWAYS – A Future of Opportunities for Collaboration – Exploring the Signature Washington State Policies in Co-Management and Trends Through Specific Cases in State-Tribal Federal Relationships
We launched this Certificate this fall of 2023, with 30 registrants (full capacity). And the adjunct faculty is Emily Washines, a member of the Yakama Nation and a graduate of the TESC Tribal Masters of Public Administration. We also took them on a tour of the Squaxin Island Tribe and spent the day with Squaxin Island Tribal Chairman and TESC Board of Trustees, Kris Peters.
PAst Events
HoW HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2023
t’igʷicidt!
Thank you to all our partners!
PNW Alutiiq Culture Camp
The PNWACC provides community to Alutiiq People residing outside traditional homelands by delivering both in-person and online opportunities which will reawaken traditional ways of being...
read more
Celebration of Two Spirit artists
Organized by Wyatt Bellon
This year the House of Welcome co-hosted the event Celebration of Two-Spirit Artists. Featuring keynote speaker Laura Martinez and artist Gabriel Saldivar...
Siam Convening
Upcoming Events
This year, the House of Welcome was honored to host our first annual SIAM Convening! SIAM stands for Supporting Indigenous Arts Mastery...
Elizabeth Peratrovich Day
Get more information on our upcoming event here!
Get more information on our upcoming exhibit
food, planet, future exhibit
Get more information on our current exhibit!
Created by Robert Dash
“I feel seen”-Tansy, UW graduate
Celebration of Two Spirit Artists
Hosted by House of Welcome
Organized by Wyatt Bellon
This symposium is intended to give space to and elevate the voices of Two-Spirit artists in the community. Each year we will host various artists whose identities are an inextricable piece of their worldview, experiences, and the art they create. We are honored to share and highlight the work of these creators and encourage everyone to lend their support and experience the knowledge they have to share.
Staff
Spotlight
Wyatt Bellon
Wyatt comes from a mixed background with Mescalaro Apache heritage, adoptive Yakama family and
Celt ancestry. His plans for this year and upcoming years are to highlight two-spirit joy through art, education and cultural activities. I want to show the world we've always been here, and we are not going anywhere.
For our first annual Celebration of Two Spirit Artists, we invited historian and Tiktok sensation Laura Martinez (they/them) as our keynote speaker to present about histories and current movement of Two-Spirit identities. During lunch, Elder Colleen Jollie
(she/her) and her daughter Bridget Ray (she/they) put on a medicine making workshop. Our final presenter, Gabriel Saldivar (they/them) shared their work in Indigepunk activism.
When we asked Wyatt why this symposium was needed, he responded: “I think every Native person has struggled with seeing misinformation and mistreatment of their cultures and communities in higher education. I wanted to build a space where two-spirits and other queer people of colour could see ourselves represented and celebrated for our achievements, existence and resilience. Historically, when marginalised folks do not have a safe space to be ourselves, we create one. That's what I'm doing, and I am so grateful for all the support from by coworkers and boss, I couldn't have achieved this accomplishment without you.”
SIAM CONVENING
September 9th & 10th, 2023
The Evergreen State College House of Welcome Cultural Arts Center launched the second year of funding for the U.S. and Canada Tribal Arts Grant Program for colleges and universities.
Olympia—The House of Welcome Cultural Arts Program at the Evergreen State College announced awardees for the 2023 grant Supporting Indigenous Artist Mastery (SIAM) program. The program is open to community colleges and four-year public and private colleges in a 13-state region and British Columbia, which are working with Tribes and First Nations in their service region to support and promote Tribally cultural arts programming with direct engagement from Tribes and First Nations they serve.
The grant is named SIAM from the Lushootseed word for “respected elder.” The grant awards mainstream colleges and universities that operate or are starting Tribal cultural arts programs that strongly engage with Tribes and Tribal artists local to the college.
This Tribally guided arts programming model aligns with our public service mission to strengthen a community of cultural artmaking programs that deepen the relationality between universities and their local Tribes.
In the fall of 2023, with an energized spirit of hospitality, we hosted the first Gathering of SIAM, “Making Home to Native Artists,” which embodies a spirit of service for Tribal cultural arts. During the gathering, we developed a shared appreciation for the unique landscape of Indigenous arts and cultures in mainstream colleges. We were especially grateful to the cultural artists who contributed to the gathering, adding meaning to advocate for ongoing cultural reclamation at mainstream institutions.
By Mary Kummer, HoW Program Specialist
Managed by
In 2021, management of the Evergreen Gallery was transferred to the House of Welcome Cultural Arts Center. The House of Welcome is responsible for organizing and overseeing the Evergreen Gallery’s temporary exhibitions, with a new show installed at the beginning of Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters.
Hours
Monday - Wednesday
Friday & Saturday
9AM - 6PM
(Closed Thursdays & Sundays)
Location
Evans Hall, Room 2204
2700 Evergreen Pkwy NW Olympia, WA 98505
Current Exhibit
Food Planet Future
Created by Robert Dash
January 8, 2024- March 29, 2024
Statement of Intent
The intent behind these varying exhibitions is intrinsically linked to the mission of the House of Welcome: to advance Indigenous arts and cultures through education, cultural exchange, and economic opportunity. The House of Welcome staff has accepted the responsibility to provide the Evergreen and surrounding communities a chance to experience art from diverse cultures, philosophies, disciplines, and media.
Building Relationship
Prompt: “If you were an art piece what would you be and why?”
Laura
If I had to choose and art form it would be what is commonly known as a Chilkat weaving or Naaxiin (fringe about the body). I admire the ingenuity of the early weavers who thought to twine cedar with the wool for the wonderful warp, giving it presence and strength. I love the skill weavers have developed to twine complicated designs following the formline in a form that lends itself mostly to geometric design. I’ll never be a weaver, but I love the artform and the designs. My favorite design on a tunic or bag is the ghost face design.
Linley
If I were a piece of art, I would be AlterNative Protector Mask. I select Alternative Protector Mask because it is one of my three dimensional artworks creatively recycled into art. The hands for the headdress are my hands. As Indigenous people we creatively and intellectually used the natural resources to benefit our existence, in our contemporary world these resources include man-made materials. As Indigenous people our assertion to protect our rights is construed as political activism with negative ramifications and responded to with COINTELPRO subversive actions as in the Aceti Sakowin Water Protectors movement. We are Indigenous peaceful protectors of our sovereignty.
I live a life of art in the art of life.
Mary
As an art piece, I would be a finely woven cedar basket created by a QʷiddiččaɁa·qsup (Makah woman) from WaɁač village. This sturdy twined basket was made with culturally significant cedar, whose fibers ensure durability and water-tight resiliency for generations to come. It has a vital role in gathering, storing, and serving its people. The basket is a precious heirloom belonging to a family and was used every Qakwašpaɫ (July) for salmonberry picking. Although it has been part of a private collection for over a century and is far from its home, it still holds significant communal status with the Makah. Its bark is infused with plant-based dyes of pipick̓uk (orange) pigment from years of berry picking. Some may see it merely as an object, but it is a repatriated basket that has finally returned to its rightful home.
If you were an art piece, what would you be and why?
I would be this painting
Seeing my mind as a dream conceived of stranger things
Where black is white, shadow is bright
And there is fascination
In both sides of creation
An undying attraction to things deemed monstrous
within unsightly abstractions
Painting by Elisa Brown
Linda
I would be a mixed media collage with multiple layers perhaps some simple poetic wording from an altered book on that reflects my thoughts, wet and dry mediums inspired by nature and a mix of found items that hold my heart.
Alexis
If I was a piece of art, I would be this ceramic mug made by my cousin. It sits in my hand perfectly and brings me joy when I drink from it. To me, it is the perfect combination of form and function. I love the way the glaze varies across the mug and how the side curves in by the handle.
Wyatt
"Hope is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman Like me to Have - but I Have it" by Lana Del Rey. Since it's a song, there's not a picture I can put to it. Sounds an odd choice I'm sure, but anyone who knows me closely would know why that's the one piece of art I would be. It's far too much to explain, but personally when I apply childhood to young adult life, and my journey with identity- the hope I've carried throughout all I've faced, I wouldn't be able to think of another piece that authentically represents myself. Someday I will have a different piece, but for now this is it.
hOUSE OF WELCOME
Merchandise
Digitized Design by Alexis Xochiua Based on the original Thunderbird by Greg Colfax and Andy Peterson
Thunderbird Beanie
$15.00
Cotton Beanie - Small
$20.00
Wool beanie - large
thunderbird
sticker
$5.00
Tattoo Designs by HoW Intern, Wyatt Bellon
Press-on Tattoos!
Packs of 4
$5.00
Packs of 4
$5.00
