Why do we go out to see and experience art? For me the answer may be a physical one. When I really connect with something, I find that my heart starts beating faster and my breath changes. When I encounter something that truly fills me with awe, my physical system takes note.

Galleries and museums have taken on indigenous histories as well— both here in the U.S. and elsewhere. I was really floored by two companion exhibitions in Minneapolis. One was “Arctic Highways: Unbounded Indigenous People” at the American Swedish Institute and the other was “Okizi (To Heal)” at All My Relations Gallery. Both featured contemporary Indigenous artists across cultures and continents that addressed Indigenous histories and storytelling as well as contemporary issues.

Both of the exhibitions featured a joint project by Sámi artist Tomas Colbengtson and Swedish painter Stina Folkebrant called “Mygrations.” Colbengtson’s primary colored monochrome screen-prints on polycarbonate glass developed from archival photographs of Sámi people from the late 19th century were installed in front of Folkebrant’s mystical paintings of reindeer. The three dimensional installation created a viscerally present experience with history.

Read the full article HERE.