#FIST OF THE HEAVENS BUILD FOR FREE#

The images made by these artists ranged from scenes of everyday life to creation stories, Inuit architectural structures to the migrations of caribou. From the co-ops emerged notable artists such as Kenojuak Ashevak, Pudlo Pudlat, Napachie Pootoogook and Jessie Oonark. 3 Some of the first printmaking co-ops began as government sponsored programs in the Arctic as a way to create alternate economies for the Inuit during the 1950s and 60s. While the Inuit have long incised images on ivory, stone and musk ox horn, printmaking on paper has a much more recent history. Indigenous printmaking has a unique history in Canada. Through their work, Belcourt and Murdoch seek to resist the narratives circulated not only by proponents of pipelines, but also the federal, provincial, and municipal governments who continue to undermine Indigenous self-determination. Issues related to access to clean water, the safe-guarding of the land and its resources as well as the survivance of Indigenous languages and the protection of children from child services are just a small fraction of the challenges the Canadian government and its settler citizens have placed on Indigenous communities. These striking and powerfully illustrative images help communicate the urgent issues facing Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island today.

#FIST OF THE HEAVENS BUILD FOR FREE#

Many of these images have been made available for free and can be downloaded through the Onaman CollectiveвЂ™s website. Pared with the images, phrases such as вЂњWater is Life,вЂќ вЂњConsultation is Not Consent,вЂќ and вЂњMother Earth RevolutionвЂќ are used to solidify its Indigenous rights messaging. The image, sometimes called вЂњThunderbird WomanвЂ™s MomвЂќ uses traditional historical references while also referencing current movements of water protection actions and Isaac MurdochвЂ™s Thunderbird Woman.

Inside her womb is a baby Thunderbird, a reference to the traditional story told by Isaac Murdoch. Most prominent was the image of a standing pregnant figure with her fist raised, whose womb emanates water which cycles through her fist, directly connecting to the sky, which then flows from the heavens in the form of rain into the figureвЂ™s pail, an homage to the copper pail used by Indigenous water walkers across Turtle Island. Screen-printed or photocopied, these images showed the cyclical nature of life on Earth. Photo: Nadia KurdДЄs I looked at the all signs made at the protest, one thing became immediately clear: many of the images and slogans used either directly or partially drew inspiration from the work of Nehayiw Michif (Cree MГ©tis) artist Christi Belcourt and Anishnaabe traditional teacher Isaac Murdoch.

WetвЂ™suwetвЂ™en anti-pipeline protest, Beaver Hills House Park, January 8, 2019.

Fist of the heavens build