The first time that I saw this painting was on Wednesday, at Rita 101, when I had the pleasure of hearing Ms.LaDuke speak about her cause to be a water protector. For those of you who did not make it to the talk, let me just sum up what she talked about. She discussed how this painting is a symbol of resilience and that it embraces the idea behind of standing up for a good cause. In her case it was the land of the indigenous people and how she stood up against a pipeline that was going to run through these lands, and how with the help of many people they were able to stop the pipeline from occurring. She also discussed the importance of growing your own food and how if we act now we can save our beloved planet. She was full of hope and I left that talk feeling inspired and hopeful too. There were many other important points that she discussed, but I want to focus on this painting.

I wanted to do more research on this painting and I forgot what the painting was called so I typed in google “water protector symbol of Laduke” and this painting that I had seen at the talk popped up. When I clicked on it, it gave me the option of clicking a link to go to an article. The article (link below) gave a more detail descriptions of the painting. This beautiful piece was painted by Votan Ik and  Derek Brown helped, too. In addition, there are much symbols behinds the red mask that the woman is wearing to cover her nose and mouth. There are several meanings behind the mask such as it hides the identity of the woman and protects from tear gas and gives it “universal appeal as in every woman,”according to Maira Villard, the American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO) Arts and Cultural Coordinator.

Most importantly, it is painted on the outside of AICHO in Duluth,Minnesota. The article discussed that it“is a potent declaration of the issues facing Native American women such as violence, sex trafficking, and environmental racism” (Pember 2017).  In our class, we focused several times on how woman in majority places were seen as the caring type or how we praises things such as “Mother Nature and Father Time.” What I am trying to say is that this painting represents not just one lady but women as a whole.

What I personally took from this painting was that the ladies head is at the center of the flower with all of the pretty red petal coming out of it or surrounding it. This could be seen as a symbol of connectives to nature, as in  how it is the circle of life, and we are one with nature. Humans and the environment go hand in hand. We are not separate but united as one. The values that are ignored that it has more of an appeal to ladies than males because it is putting female as the center. On the other hand, it can also be the greatest strength of the painting because it could be saying that nothing would be possible without women. I think, the artist wanted to portray the lady in the painting looks like someone that needs to be taken seriously. She looks mysteriously but at the same time looks like someone who is being protective and standing and guarding something that is precious to her. I really liked this painting so much that I am saving it as my laptop background. So whenever I open my laptop, it will motivate me to be awesome. 🙂

The painting is this one below in the article.

https://rewire.news/article/2017/09/21/ganawenjiige-onigam-new-symbol-resilience-duluth-minnesota/

Art is typically a visual representation of how a specific artist sees the world or possibly what they wish to say about a current issue. In a way, art has the capacity to go beyond a conversation because it creates power beyond simple words. A genuine and rare feeling can be invoked by viewing an art piece, which is an entirely personal experience. Many artists draw inspiration from a combination of their personal lives and immediate surroundings. The environment naturally influences and relates to art, whether classic or contemporary.

When I think of art interacting with the environment I think about Ansel Adams. He was and continues to be, one of the most influential people in both the arts and the environmental movement. He is a true example of creating a life around what you are passionate about, which for him was documenting his surroundings. Ansel Adams life became centered around Yosemite, which is where he found the Sierra Club and also his wife. In Yosemite, he developed his photography skills and began getting noticed as an up and coming photographer. The Sierra Club also helped him by publishing his work in their bulletin.

Ansel Adams photos capture beauty in landscapes that people tend to look over in their daily lives. This related to the environmental movement because his photographs managed to personify nature, making people relate to them. The emotional response to Ansel Adams work caused a feeling of responsibility or protection, which help to launch the environmental movement. On his official website, he is described as, “both the artist of the Sierra Nevada and the defender of Yosemite”. His personal connection to Yosemite transformed into a call for action in protecting the wilderness. He worked his entire life and formed his career around making the idea of wilderness relatable to those who did not have the first-hand experience of it. Adams himself described wilderness as, “a mystique: a valid, intangible, non-materialistic experience.” He has a unique lens of the wild, due to forming such a personal connection to it. Overall, Ansel Adams’ photographs have become a time capsule for true respect and dedication to the environment.

https://www.google.com/search?biw=1440&bih=721&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=NYWbXOLIMI__5gK-4p3ABQ&q=climate+change+art&oq=climate+change+art&gs_l=img.3..0l10.4025.7287..7408…2.0..0.93.1246.16……1….1..gws-wiz-img…….0i67j0i7i30j0i10j0i7i10i30j0i19j0i7i30i19j0i7i10i30i19.38OyAngWVno#imgrc=6narYBQPEc1F1M:

These two paintings are extremely meaningful in present day discussion of climate change. Unfortunately, even if the entire planet stopped producing green-house gases right this second, we would still experience consequences of climate change. This is why we must make changes now to minimize the future effects of climate change. The comparison of the paintings provide a look into the future based upon how we act now.

The picture on the left portrays our future if we continue on the path that we are on now. The Statue of Liberty is covering her face because the air is so polluted that it is hazardous to breathe. In her left hand, she holds a barrel of gasoline because this is the main cause of climate change. Humans have been using fossil fuels since the Industrial Revolution in the 1800’s, and tons of carbon dioxide is produced as a byproduct and pumped into the atmosphere.  In her other hand, she holds a gasoline bump to show once again, we must step away from fossil fuels because it is a limited resource, and the byproduct is harmful. The background is a musky brown, and even the clouds are dark. Smoke stacks produce large clouds of dark smoke that will increase the rate of climate change and the consequences. In addition, vultures are circling the Statue of Liberty symbolizing death. We are currently experiencing the Anthropocene Extinction, the sixth mass extinction. It is called the anthropocene because all of it is due to human activities. Biodiversity is plummeting, and species are going extinct before humans can even discover them.

The picture on the right is a different story. It gives hope that maybe humans will change, and there can be a positive, bright future. The air appears to be clean because of the blue sky and white clouds. In her left hand, the Statue of Liberty holds a solar panel, a renewable energy source. In her other hand, she holds up a wind turbine, which is another renewable, clean energy resource. This shows the future if humans make the change from fossil fuels to clean energy. In the background, it looks like little green bushes are growing, which shows life is thriving. Bald eagles are flying around the Statue of Liberty instead of vultures.

These paintings are powerful on their own, but when put side by side, it is appalling. Humans are going to have a frightening future if something is not done very soon about climate change. We are already past the window of completely avoiding the long term consequences of climate change, but we can control how bad the consequences are. These paintings only take on one of the harmful effects of human activities, and unfortunately, humans affect the environment in many more ways. There is a solution to this wicked problem, but people do not want to break away from fossil fuels. If we want a future for our planet, we need to make extreme changes right now, or we will end up like the left picture.