On October twelve Steve Loft visited the University of Lethbridge and did a talk addressing the successes and challenges contemporary aboriginal artists face today. Steve is currently the curator of the National Gallery of Aboriginal Art, he works in both video and multimedia art forms. Steve reflected on a recent trip he made to Germany to participate in an exhibition highlighting aboriginals. To his surprise upon entering the space he was bombarded with many stereotypical items such as chewing tobacco, cigarette ads and beef jerky logos. To Steve’s surprise the curator did not seem to understand that to aboriginals these symbols were very degrading and racist. Needless to say the conversation between the two became very heated. Steve came away understanding that in parts of the world the aboriginal communities are still viewed as “the Indians” and there is still this tendency to have a romanticized view of a culture that deals with a “cultural genocide” as Steve points out.
The work that aboriginal artists are producing today address many of these cultural stereotypes and the impact they have on truly understanding a culture and its peoples. A song was played that consisted of traditional aboriginal music with a hip hop overlaid. The song made many strong references to stereotypes and the social issues many aboriginals deal with today. This work I find interesting because it is a response by contemporary artist to address the past and the present while connecting with the listener. Steve explains that many representations of aboriginals have been misrepresented and distorted throughtout history. For example, many images that exist today of generations past are being discredited and viewed in this light. Steve explains “the idea of the Indian has long since been used as political and social tool, for example the warrior, the stoic or the drunk.” Images of aboriginals still appear today in commercialized society, which was very apparent when he visited the German exhibition. It is important to understand that progress has been made, but there are still hurdles that must be overcome in order to break this cycle of misrepresentation.
The work of Jeff Thomas illustrates this point as well, he uses images that appear to give a one dimensional view of a cultural and as Steve explains attempts to “liberate the Indian and extend them beyond the image. Jeff takes images and attempts to confront cultural stereotypes and explore where history has placed the aboriginal. The last group of works Steve highlighted during his talk was a series of images referencing aboriginal masks. Traditional aboriginal masks are carved from trees and attempt to tell a story. The artist addresses how aboriginals see themselves when so many people think of the stereotypes. Steve adds “they attempt to replace an absence with a presence”
I find that contemporary artists today have many challenges dealing with the cause and effects that their culture has had to deal with since the introduction of colonialism. This generation of artist must learn to balance the present in their work and not forget how the past directly and indirectly informs their work. Steve agrees and states in closing “artists today are attempting to reconstruct the narrative and manifest a new reality at the same time not being afraid to relate themselves with their colonial history.” This talk affirms that aboriginals and specifically artists continue to address and deconstruct the past in attempts to break free from any misrepresentation of their culture.
No comments:
Post a Comment