Numbers for each work correspond with the numbers on the gallery map available at the front desk.
Moving forward into the gallery, the first thing you will approach is the curatorial text.
“The Iridescence of Knowing” is written in all caps in a yellow, sans serif font against a dark aquamarine blue wall. Underneath to the left written in light blue are the exhibition dates: September 14 to November 18th.
Below the exhibition dates, is the list of exhibiting artists, written in a white, sans serif font. The artists names are listed in two columns in alphabetical order by last name:
|
Weshoyot Alvitre |
Sky Hopinka |
|
Theresa Ambo |
Adrienne Kinsella |
|
Jessa Calderon |
James Luna |
|
Gerald Clarke |
L. Frank Manriquez |
|
Lewis deSoto |
Leah Mata Fragua |
|
Robert Dorame |
Samantha Morales - Johnson |
|
Katie Dorame |
Cara Romero |
|
River Garza |
Craig Torres |
To the right of the exhibiting artist list is the curatorial text, written in the same white, sans serif font.
This is the beginning of the curatorial text.
“The Iridescence of Knowing invites visitors to explore the rich lineage of Indigenous cultural production in Tovaangar, known today as the greater Los Angeles basin. The exhibition brings together a collection of works from diverse artists from multiple generations and varied First Peoples communities of Southern California. The works challenge conventional boundaries between "craft" and "fine art”, uplifting intergenerational transmission of culture, the significance of lineage, and the profound connections between cultural tradition and contemporary artistic practices.
In Indigenous cultures, ancestral histories are often influenced by multifaceted perspectives—ecological, spiritual, oral, cosmological. The notion of iridescence captures this fluid, reflective, ever-evolving nature of understanding and serves as a powerful metaphor for the transformative and dynamic qualities of knowing.
Weaving, both as a physical technique vital to Indigenous craft and as a symbolic concept, lies at the heart of this exhibition. Weaving represents not only tangible embodied skill, but also the intangible essence of transgenerational cultural memory that bridges time and space. Here, weaving serves as a powerful symbol, holding space for different modalities of artistic expression and fostering a circular expansion of ideas that move beyond traditional linear narratives of time. In this way, contemporary approaches to making are woven inextricably with generational ones, holding refractions of influence and celebrating the vibrant presence of both the past and present in the current creative landscape.
The Iridescence of Knowing provides a space for reflection, dialogue, and celebration of artistic traditions. It invites visitors to consider the embodied relationship between physical objects and the realms of generational energy that they hold. It encourages exploration of ancestral lineages and contemplation of ways in which cultural traditions can be sustained, evolve, and remain relevant in the present and for generations to come.”
This is the end of the curatorial text. This is the last of the text on this wall.
Then, moving counter-clockwise in the gallery you will approach the first work in the gallery.
The curatorial text reads:
1. “Leah Mata Fragua
Lepo Lepo, 2023
Cottonwood bark, willow bark & cotton
As climate shifts impact our world, the resources that we depend on to sustain our life ways have become increasingly scarce. Even the materials we use to weave our baskets have become harder to come by, forcing us to be more resourceful and inventive in our approach. It was in the midst of this challenge that I found my inspiration, a new body of work. Instead of weaving baskets from full materials, I began using the scraps and remnants of our basket materials, making them into beautiful paper, dyed with traditional plant practices. Each written coil is symbolic of coiled baskets. Post contact, it wasn’t uncommon to see our people borrow from Latin orthography and incorporate written language into our baskets. Inscribed on this basket is the saying, ‘Lepo Lepo’ which in the Yak Tityu Tityu Yak Tiłhini Northern Chumash language loosely translates to ‘go out and see the world and return home’. A sentiment I imagine most of our basket makers intended for their pieces. Yet today, many of our baskets sit in collections, still waiting to come home.
A line separates the work description from the artist bio. The artist bio reads:
Leah Mata Fragua (she/her) is an artist, educator, and member of the Yak Tityu Tityu Yak Tiłhini (Northern Chumash) Tribe located on the Central California Coast. As a place-based artist, Leah’s kincentric approach seamlessly blends shared iconography with personal imagery, highlighting the impact each has on the other. She uses a diverse range of materials, from synthetic to organic, place based to recycled, to explore the interconnectedness and dependence between land, kinships, and self. She understands that her art is a reflection of the way she prioritizes the protection of traditional materials and the continuation of art forms that are important to her community, which intersect with her individual practice.”
This is the end of the artist bio.
Lepo Lepo is a handwoven basket, and is 12 inch in diameter and 4 inch in height. The basket is placed on a clear plinth which hangs from the ceiling at waist level, at 3 ½ feet from the ground. The basket is light beige, with a thin, paper-like texture. On the inner surface of the basket, the words ‘Lepo Lepo’ have been repeatedly handwritten in circular rings around the circumference of the basket. The rings continue down until the center, creating another circle from the absence of words, about an inch in diameter.
To the left of Lepo Lepo, is the next piece.
The curatorial text reads:
2. “Theresa J. Ambo,
Tongva Style Basket No. 2, 2023
Juncus coil, deer grass
Loan courtesy of the artist and Nohaarxe Miyii Pokuu (Weaving Together as One)
“This basket was woven as part of Tongva communities’ efforts to revitalize traditional basketry practices. This basket takes up all the elements of a traditional basket—materials, method, style, shape, and design.
Nohaarxe Miyii Pokuu has been together for the past year working to revitalize the art of basket weaving. Our tradition has been dormant for the last 100 years. We are working to bridge this gap through knowledge sharing and learning from Tongva baskets held in collections. The baskets are our teachers. This practice has been a way to build strength, health and healing within our community.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio. The artist bio reads:
Theresa J. Ambo is the daughter of Lane and Dolores Stewart and sister to Ramona Rodriguez, Kelly Stewart, and Lane “Buddy” Stewart. She is a member of Nohaarxe Miyii Pokuu (Weaving Together as One) and works full-time at UC San Diego as an assistant professor of education studies. She also co-directs the Indigenous Futures Institute and is passionate about research that examines the relationships between Native Nations and settler colonial universities. Her family descends from the villages of Jaibepet and Tobipet.
This is the end of the artist bio.
Tongva Style Basket No. 2 is a handwoven basket, and is 13 inches in circumference and 4 inches in height. It is placed on a clear, plastic plinth, similar to Lepo Lepo, hanging from the ceiling, 4ft from the ground. The basket is shallow, and is made out of tightly coiled juncus coil and deergrass. The color is a light, burnt yellow with a dark brown accent for the woven pattern. There are two dark brown bands, one starts a centimeter from the basket’s rim and the other around 2 inches from the center. Between the two bands is a pattern of three triangles that circle around the basket. The triangles are aligned by their base, and are placed in a diagonal position in between the bands, creating a spiral effect. Portions of the basket vary in its beige, yellow hue, the darker hues indicate the end of a juncus coil.
Moving onto the wall on the left, is the third piece. The wall label reads:
3. “Samantha Morales-Johnson,
The Land Reflects the History I-III, 2023
Ink on paper
“These illustrations reflect the overgrowth of non-native species that I’ve observed at Huhuunga, the recently returned acre of land. Huhuunga is the first parcel of homeland returned to my community in Los Angeles County. Popular drought-tolerant plant species from around the world such as Eucalyptus have taken over a significant portion of this acreage. The same overwhelming dilemma that our Native plants face in urban spaces, we, the Tongva people, also experience as we face challenges in representation even within Indigenous spaces.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio. The artist bio reads:
Samantha Morales-Johnson (she/her) is an Afro-Indigenous Gabrielino/Tongva multidisciplinary artist, environmental scientist, educator, and learning ethnobotanist. She received her B.A. in marine biology before attending graduate school for her certificate in science illustration. Samantha has worked with institutions like Pitzer College creating illustrated educational material for 4th and 5th-grade environmental science curricula aligning with California science standards and traditional Indigenous environmental knowledge (IEK). She has also created material for and speaks often on the Protect White Sage campaign, a social media initiative bringing awareness to white sage poaching in the wellness industry. Samantha’s work is inspired by resistance against climate change and the colonist roots underneath the environmental distresses we experience today.”
This is the end of the artist bio.
The Land Reflects the History is a series of three 9 x 12 ink botanical ink drawings; individually framed and hung on the wall in portrait orientation. Within each of the three pieces, a singular plant is drawn in red, whilst the surrounding plants and objects are drawn in a dark blue. A legend is placed at the center below each of the drawings: the red color indicates ‘Native’, the blue color indicates ‘Non-Native’.
Right image description
The drawing on the right depicts a landscape of plants alongside a brick wall on a white background. A short bricked wall stretches alongside the landscape, in the same dark blue along the center horizon. At the center of the image stands a tree drawn in blue, the trunk of the tree is split into two and branches out into multiple branches. Small leaves are drawn around the branches and are colored in varying hues of blue. A blue plant resembling a fan palm is drawn beside it to the right. Similar fan palm plants are drawn beside the tree and down toward the left lower corner of the image in varying sizes. The left corner has cross hatching surrounding the left side of the fan palm drawn by the bottom left of the image. Two additional fan palms frame the right corner, and are smaller in comparison. Smaller plants that resemble the Eucalyptus plant are drawn from the bottom center of the image, area below the brick wall, and surround the fan palm plant, the red plant is drawn in the lower center of the tree and large fan palm. The singular red plant has two main stems, the one on the left stretches diagonally, and the stem on the right stretches up and branches out into three parts. Small, oval leaves are drawn horizontally from the plant’s stem.
Center image description
The drawing in the center depicts a hillside of trees. The top of the hill is by the center plane of the image and curves down to the right corner, grass is rendered with lines following the curve. A two-brick platform is depicted on the bottom plane of the image in blue. A red tree is drawn within the center, slightly to the right, and takes up two thirds of portrait orientation. The trunk of the red tree starts a centimeter from the brick platform, and starts to curve towards the right at the center, making a slight ‘C’ shape. At the curve of the trunk, the red tree separates out into thinner branches at three points. The branch that stems from the top of the thicker trunk, extends perpendicularly to the brick platform, with a slight diagonal direction to the left corner. The trunk of another blue tree covers the red plant’s leaves. Another branch extends straight, with a slight lean to the left towards the top, and has two smaller branches at the center of the branch. Two other thinner branches start to the left of the red plant’s curve. Each branch has a cluster of red leaves at the branches’ ends. Two blue trees frame the top plane of the image; one tree takes up the entire right side of the image, whilst the other branches from the upper right side and extends toward the blue tree on the right. Another blue willow-like tree sits on the middle plane of the image, the branches are surrounded by leaves. Several logs are drawn by the lower right corner of the image.
Left Image Description
The drawing on the left depicts a cluster of plants amongst a small cliff. On the lower left of the image, there is a square platform made of bricks, drawn in blue. A blue plant with long leaves, similar to an aloe vera, sits on the top of the bricks, a smaller one drawn on the left side of the brick platform. Starting from the upper plane of the image, there are blue plants drawn downwards from each side, creating a cliff like landscape. The blue plants continue down until the brick platform, and the log drawn by the right corner. Where the left and right side of the cliff of plants meet, a cluster of red plants are drawn upwards, opposing the direction of the blue plants. The red plants’ stems are rendered with a thin line, with small, thin leaves protruding from each side.
Moving left to the next piece on the wall. The wall label reads:
4. “Gerald Clarke,
Continuum, 2023,
Ink on paper
““This work was created using a rubber stamp. The rubber stamp featured text which included words such as ‘LOVE’, ‘TIME’, ‘SURVIVANCE’, and ‘PATIENCE’. The work features a coiled basket that represents the long tradition of California Indian Basketry. For the Cahuilla, the art of basketry was a gendered art and was practiced by women in the community. This work was created to pay homage to the dedication, knowledge and talent of these amazing artists/culture bearers.”
A line separates the work description and the artist bio which reads:
“Gerald Clarke (he/him) is an enrolled citizen of the Cahuilla Band of Indians and lives in the home his grandfather built on the Cahuilla Indian Reservation where he oversees the Clarke family cattle ranch. He is currently a Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Riverside where he teaches classes in Native American art, history, and culture.”
This is the end of the artist bio.
A basket is rendered in black and white tones. As you step closer to the image, you can see that the basket is composed of individually stamped words: “PERSEVERANCE”, “SURVIVANCE'', “LOVE”, “PATIENCE,” “REMEMBRANCE”, “TIME. The basket’s pattern and row of ridges are defined by the overlapping of these pressed stamps. The lower half of the basket is adorned with a pattern: the pattern starts with three dark triangles, which circle around the surface of the basket, with the points of the triangle facing downward. A line outlines the centimeter space between the triangles, creating a hexagonal pattern as the lines connect. The pattern continues and blends with the bottom of the baskets. On the lower left corner, the title, is written: “Continuum”, and the artist’s signature is written on the lower right corner: “Gerald Clarke L. ‘23”
Turning 90 degrees to the left to face the next wall is the next piece. The wall label reads:
5. “Katie Dorame,
Sunbridge, 2023,
Oil paint on canvas
“I painted this large-scale portrait of a Tongva woman in bright luminous yellow as a love letter to Los Angeles. The figure is based on Tonantzin Carmelo, an actor who plays Paara, a Tongva woman on the TV show La Brea. The lack of representation in media and need for representation compels me to often use Indigenous/ Native American actors in my work. I believe this is the first network television show or film that has prominently represented a Tongva character. Interesting, seeing how Hollywood is built and operates on Tongva land.
The pose, gesture and scale of the piece is based on the works of 18th century portrait painter Thomas Gainsborough. Adding this layer of art history brings in a western tradition of compositional beauty but also reveals my upbringing going to LACMA, the Getty and other cultural institutions of Los Angeles where I only saw parts of myself represented—fragments that I’m trying to mend and amend as I paint. The background and foreground feature an iconic LA bridge and Native plants. The bright yellow glows and the brushstrokes are wispy, sketchy, and thin or thick referencing ‘the underpainting’. All of this creates a sense of being between worlds and time—a place I often find myself. I hope this painting inspires viewers to think about the history of Los Angeles, its future and the role that we all play in shaping it.”
A line separates the work description and the artist bio which reads:
“Katie Dorame (she/her) is a visual artist born in Los Angeles, currently living and working in Oakland, CA. She makes paintings and drawings that build her own directorial vision: reclaiming, recasting and re-working Hollywood and its land, roles and history. She is a Tongva artist of mixed European and Indigenous American ancestry.
This is the end of the artist bio:
This painted portrait depicts a figure of a woman standing on a bridge, with plants surrounding the foreground and the distant landscape in the background; it is painted in entirely yellow, blue and green hues. The figure stands, her body facing the viewer and her gaze directed towards the left, in a calm expression. She has dotted facial markings below the corners of her bottom lip. Her hair is long, with slight waves and flows down behind her shoulders. She is wearing multiple layers of necklaces in varying shapes; small brushstrokes define the beads of her necklace. Her clothing consists of a dark blue, sleeveless top with a folded collar. A fur-like shawl rests on her left shoulder (right on the viewer’s side) and hangs down onto her waist. Her left arm is bent perpendicular and rests at her waist, holding a cloth, and she has fabric wrapped around her wrist. Her right arm is bent slightly, and rests lower than her left arm, towards her pelvis. She is wearing a bracelet, in black, and a blue band on her upper left arm. A shawl, in a dark green, covers the portion of her right elbow. Her skirt has two layers, and straight paint strokes, render the skirt’s pleated texture. A darker green, almost brown, like fabric is tied at her right. Plants are rendered on the bottom corners and stem up towards the left upper corner. They are in a beige and light blue color, complementing and blending to the yellow background. A bridge and river are rendered behind the women’s torso and extend toward the viewer at around her left arm, and like all objects in the background, are of a faint color, contrasting the figure. A pattern resembling a sun made out of two rows of triangles, is drawn behind by the figure’s face and fades into the yellow background.
Turning again in a 90 degree direction to the left to face the adjacent wall, you are facing the land acknowledgement. It is written in the same blue hue of the wall didactic wall, in a sans serif italicized font. The wall text reads:
“OXY ARTS sits on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the Gabrielino/Tongva peoples. We acknowledge the Gabrielino/Tongva as the original caretakers of Tovaangar, which spans LA County, parts of Northern Orange County and the Southern Channel Islands. We pay our respects to the Honuukvetam (Ancestors), ‘Ahiihirom (Elders) and ‘Eyoohiinkem (our relatives/relations) past, present and emerging.
This acknowledgement is only a small part of OXY ARTS’ larger commitment to deepening relationships with our community of Gabrielino/Tongva neighbors, centering truth, healing and reconciliation and elevating the multigenerational cultural vibrancy of our community’s First Peoples.”
This is the end of the wall text.
To the left of the wall text, is the next piece. There are two wall labels for this piece, and are placed to the left of the piece. The first wall label reads:
6. “Adrienne Kinsella
Tovaangar, 2023
Colored pencil on frosted mylar, inkjet print
““Tovaangar is a Tongva word meaning, ‘the whole world’, it reveals the presence of the Tongva Peoples within the greater Los Angeles area with reference to both history and the contemporary, it collapses time momentarily, and seeks to mend gaps in our collective understanding. The Tongva language was spoken, not written, so our place name ending is a sound meant to be heard; as a result it is sometimes written as -nga, -gna and sometimes -ngna. Some villages were extensions of others, and some remain mysterious in their naming. Even with the utmost care for historical accuracy and representation, there is always room for growth in understanding. This map of Tovaangar only encompasses Los Angeles County in response to the OXY ARTS site. Additional villages outside of Los Angeles County are listed adjacent to the map.
The botanicals that surround the imagery are all Native plants that have significant meanings for the Tongva and continue today as agents of hope and healing. There is beauty in considering the longevity of these various species that sustained our tribal ancestors, and how we may experience these life-giving entities today. The continuance of these species is a beautiful example of the preservation of the Tongva culture. To view the same plants our ancestors saw, is a unique point of connection.
This project is the culmination of collective research, study and contributions of various tribal members, historians and botanists. Very special thanks to Virginia Carmelo, Christina Conley, Lauren Dennhardt, Jennifer Dorame, Robert Dorame, Emilie Ducourneau and Desiree Martinez, for their help with the research for this project.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio which reads:
“Artist, Adrienne Kinsella, works in a variety of media, focusing on drawing and painting. As a descendant of the Tongva of Los Angeles, issues of access and belonging, or lack thereof, is a theme that spans her work. Her drawings are rendered with colored pencil on frosted mylar, this semi-transparent substrate echoes themes of transience and the dichotomies of interiors, exteriors and public vs. private spaces. Her paintings utilize oil, and acknowledge this media’s historical weight; yet simultaneously question this tradition through disjointed subject matter and the act of often rendering these works on paper.”
This is the end of the first wall label. The second wall label of this piece reads:
“Villages beyond the map
Island Villages:
San Clemente Island (Kinkipar) - Tibahanga, Guinguina, Kiingkenga
Sam Nicolas Island - Harashnga
Santa Barbara Island - ‘Tchunashnga
Villages South of Los Angeles County:
Alamitos - Puvungna
Anaheim - Hotuuknga
Balboa - Mayonga
Costa Mesa - Lopuuknga
Huntington Beach - Mayoonga
La Habra - Nakaunga, Sukangna
Mission Viejo - Isantkanga, Kiinga
Newport Beach - Kenyaanga
Norco - Paxauxa
Orange - Totpavit, Pamaayjamnga
Santa Ana - Pasbenga
Seal Beach - Motuuucheynga
Westminster - Paasvenga
Villages East of Los Angeles County:
Arrowhead Hot Springs - Apuuymonga
Chino Hills - Passingonga, Wapijanga, Horuuvnga
Colton - Homhoanga
Corona - Shiishonga, Pahavnga, Poruumanga
Cucamonga - Cucamonga
Redlands - Kaawchamanga
Riverside - Huruuvnga
San Bernardino - Wa’aachunga
San Bernardino Mountains - Kokamohvit
Yorba Linda - Pashiinonga
Cajon Junction - Amutskupinga
This is the end of the second wall label.
This piece is a map made by overlaying Tovaangar village sites on top of a Los Angeles County district map, including the Southern Channel Islands. Botanical drawings, rendered in black and white, frame the corners of the map. Along the upper left corner, ‘TOVAANGAR’ is written in call caps, and by the right lower corner, a compass made up of two branches is rendered. North is indicated by ‘N’, berries and a leaf are drawn on the West end of the compass. A butterfly is drawn along the coast of the Pacific ocean. Village sites are labeled on the frosted mylar sheet, on top of the Los Angeles map. The names of the village sites are hand written, in all-caps, and beside each name on the left is an icon of a small dome shaped house. The village sites surrounding the area of OXY ARTS are: Haahamonga, Punitavjatnga, Tov’nga (North of OXY ARTS), Apachia and Sheshikiianunga (South East of OXY ARTS)
Moving counter-clockwise, left to the doorway and to the right of the exhibition wall didactic, are the last pieces of this room. The first of the two wall label reads:
20. ‘L. Frank Manriquez
Soapstone Cup, 2023
Carved soapstone
Soapstone Whale & Sea Effigy, 2023
Carved soapstone
“These effigies are relatives to the ones held hostage in museum collections, and these siblings hold the essence of today. They are not meant to be realistic carvings, as their representation carries the influence of today’s lived reality while also bending and twisting time to connect me to my ancestors. They unintentionally and intentionally differ from their siblings as my carvings aren’t meant to be replicas.
The whale and the sea effigy call in my connection to the ocean.
The small cup came from a rough piece of soapstone. But even then, we find beauty and give purpose to what some might find undesirable.”
This is the end of the wall label.
The carved soapstones are individually placed on white plinths that extend from the wall, thin dark rods ground the soapstones to the surface. ‘Soapstone Cup’ is placed on the left, ‘Soapstone Whale’ is placed at the center, and ‘Soapstone Sea Effigy’ is placed on the right.
‘Soapstone Cup’ Description (left)
This piece is a small cup made out of carved soapstone. It is small, roughly palm-sized, 1.625 in height and width. The cup is of a dark grey color, with flecks of burnt orange, light beige, mainly around the right side of the cup and around the rim. The cup has a small symbol, protruding from the surface: a wave-like line, with a swirl extending along the left side.
‘Soapstone Whale’ Description (center)
This piece is a whale made out of carved soapstone. It is palm sized, 1.75 x 5.5 x 2 inches. The whale is placed diagonally towards the left, allowing the viewer to see the length of its body and tail, which curves downward. The whale is of a dark grey color, with white and orange hues seen alongside the bottom length of its body. There are soft ridges on the top surface of the whale’s body.
‘Soapstone Sea Effigy’ Description (right)
This piece is a triangular shaped soapstone, resembling a finned sea creature. It is palm-sized, and is slightly smaller than the other two soapstones: 0.75 x 3.625 x 1.5 inches. The piece is placed to show one side of the triangle-shaped sea effigy. The left corner is slightly thicker and rounder, and the triangle’s base slightly concaves inwards, before it reaches the right, rounded corner. The top point of the sea effigy, has a small ridge on its ride side, creating a fin-like shape, and extends down to the right corner. The sea effigy is a mixture of marbled brownish and dark greys.
The second label on this wall reads:
19. “L. Frank Manriquez
Coyote Drops the Goblet, 2021
Acrylic on Panel
“Coyote usually does things in the wrong way to teach us how to do things in the right way by doing them the wrong way. Usually. Featured as a billboard in Cara Romero’s 2021 #TONGVALAND project, this painting is part of a series of mission pieces that are my reaction to [my people] being obliterated by missions brought here by the other side of my family. Coyote Drops the Goblet is just a rejection of the forced Catholicism on our peoples. Our religions were destroyed because someone else had to put their religion before ours. So here, Coyote would be the one to drop the goblet because he has feelings about genocide and doesn’t seem to really want to accept genocide anymore.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio which reads:
“L. Frank Manriquez (Tongva / Acjachemen, pó) is an artist, writer, and tribal activist. Pó artwork (paintings, sculpture, weavings, photography, cartoons, regalia) has been featured in galleries and museums internationally. L. Frank is an active decolonizationist, culture keeper, and artist. She co-founded the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival to combat erasure and previously served on the board of the California Indian Basket Weavers Association. She serves on the board of the Cultural Conservancy, and Tongva Taraxat Paxaavxa Conservancy.”
This the end of the wall text.
This painting depicts a coyote figure in a white robe with red accents, standing amongst a landscape in front of a church-like structure. The coyote takes up most of the center composition, and looks towards the right, in a pensive expression. The coyote wears a white robe and has circular tassels along the hems of the sleeve and robe; its upper paws rests on the sides of their body. Underneath the robe, the coyote wears a red ankle-lengthed skirt; the red accents the hems of the sleeves and the collar as well. The coyote wears black shoes that point outward. A yellow goblet rests by the ground next to the left side of the coyote; the goblet’s cup faces downward to the left. The horizon line starts a centimeter down from the top image. The sky is of a dark navy, with small dots of white, and there is a small sunset where the navy blue blends into a light pink. A small church-like building is drawn by the horizon line to the right. The center of the building protrudes up slightly, with a thin Christian cross at the top. A dark half oval is drawn, depicting the building's entrance, at the bottom center of the building. A path coming out of the entrance is rendered by two darker red lines, defining the path’s edges. The path fades out, and stops as it approaches the coyote figure. Beside each side of the building, a cluster of white crosses are depicted. The left side has two rows of crosses, two on the top row, and five on the bottom. On the right side, the crosses are in a clustered row, there are seven in total. The background is of plains, in a dark red. Thin straight lines, in a darker red, define the textures of the plain.
Moving through the doorway into the large gallery, the next work is ‘Miztla at Puvungna’ which is displayed on the right wall adjacent to the doorway.
7. ‘Cara Romero
Miztla at Puvungna, 2021
Inkjet print on archival paper
“Miztla at Puvungna was created for #TONGVALAND—a site-specific installation of billboards throughout the Los Angeles area bringing awareness to the original caretakers the Tongva Peoples’ and a testament to their ongoing care for Los Angeles, its mountains, beaches, and sacred sites. The photograph features Miztlayolxochitl Aguilera at sunset at Puvungna—a sacred site for Tongva and surrounding Tribes nestled into the present-day CSU Long Beach campus near the airport. As a visitor from a federally recognized Tribe of California, I learned the stories of our brothers and sisters from the Coast whose treaties remain hidden and unratified. This is a tragic story of not having ceremonial grounds to gather in privacy and without the permission of state and private land owners. As Native people, we understand that Mother Earth must hear her languages, songs and dance that emerge from place and cultures to be in balance. I hope that Los Angelenos will critically explore what it means to live on someone’s ancestral sacred land, and that these conversations will spark actions beyond a land acknowledgment to #LANDBACK.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio which reads:
“In a photographic practice that blends documentary and commercial aesthetics, Cara Romero, an enrolled citizen of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, creates stories that draw from inter-tribal knowledge to expose the !ssures and fusions of Indigenous and non-Indigenous cultural memory, collective history, and futurity. Romero was raised between the rural Chemehuevi reservation in California’s Mojave Desert and the urban sprawl of Houston. She is based in Santa Fe, New Mexico.”
This concludes the wall label.
This piece is a photograph of a woman standing amongst three palm trees, with an airplane flying overhead towards the left; this photo appears to be taken with the camera positioned on a lower plane, facing upwards to the woman. The woman stands directly gazing at the camera with a stern expression, her body facing slightly towards the left. She has a dark line at the center of her bottom lip and extends to her chin. The woman wears long white earrings, tassels connected by brown rung-like beads, that extends down to her waist; layers of necklaces, of varying shaped pendants and bands, adorn her neck and chest. She is wearing a burnt yellow top and orange dress and long, metallic tassels are attached to the hems of her clothing. A long, brownish piece of fabric is tucked in the center of her skirt, and hangs down to her knees; on the fabric, are two iridescent squares. The woman has her arms bent, as she holds a stick-like object, pointed up towards the right; a feather is seen held between her left fingers. She is barefoot and stands on a rock which protrudes from the grass.round her ankles is an anklet made out of smaller, metallic shapes.
Continuing on to the left is the next piece. The wall label reads:
8. “Craig Torres
In The Beginning, There Was Nothing, 2023
Soapstone, dogbane
“Inspired by the exhibition’s focus on ancestral connections and creative lineages, the design of this circular soapstone pendant with dogbane cordage reflects the varies Southern California Indian Creation narratives shared by many tribalnations in their iridescent forms. It is simiplistic in its design, echoing a mnemonic device ‘to remember, to remember.’ The story tells of the emergence of ‘spirit energy’ out of nothingness. CREATOR twin spirit energes emerge and become conscious of each other’s presence. Then ensues a provocation of who is the elder of the two twins and their metamorphic transformation and eventual states of Brother SKY and Sister EARTH. SKY is determined eldest and retreats to the heavens/sky, whilse his twin remains in the middle world and becomes Mother Earth. It is then determined that Earth is pregnant and several births ensue – the first being rocks and stones, plants and trees, and animals of various forms. The last to be birthed was Wiyot, a Creator deity that predates human emergence on Earth. Finally, sometime later, humans are created and given the responsibility and obligation of being a ‘part of’ and caretaking for the whole of nature.
From the disc’s central hole of the yin/yang design, the symbol represents the emergence of the twin spirit energies, out of nothingness. The four spirals represent the creations, rock/stones, plant people, animal people, and lastly, human people taking their place in the Middle World, represented by the discovery pendant itself – Mother Earth.”
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‘Craig Torres (Tongva) descends from the Indigenous communities of the Yaavetam (Los Angeles) and Komiikravetam (Santa Monica Canyon) that existed in the Los Angeles Basin. He is also descended from three of the founding families of Los Angeles pueblo in 1781. He is a member of the Traditional Council of Pimu and involved with Ti’at Society, an organization focused on the revival of the traditional maritime culture of the Southern California coastal region and the Southern Channel Islands. He is an artist, as well as a cultural educator, presenter, and a Tongva consultant to schools, culture and nature centers, museums, and city, state, and government agencie.
Craig is involved with the organization Preserving Our Heritage and Chia Café, which provides cooking demos and classes with California native plants. These activities also provide education on the importance of preserving native plants, habitats, and landscapes for future generations.
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This piece is a pendant made out of carved soapstone with dogbane cordage, which hangs on a plinth, diagonal to the wall – small, gold rods, secure the pendant to the plinth. The pendant is of an orange, beige color, with dark brownish hues, highlighting a rocky texture. There are carved lines painted with red pigment, they start around the small center hole of the pendant, creating a yin/yang shape. From four points of the yin/yang’s circumference, thin lines extend and curve out towards the circumference of the pendant. The pendant has two holes carved at the top, where spiraled cordage is looped through and tied above the pendant. The cordage is tied to make a necklace; and is of a brown-ish color.
Moving onto the left is the next piece, and the last piece on this wall. The wall label reads:
9. “Cara Romero
Weshoyot, 2021
Inkjet print on archival paper
“As a Chemehuevi Indian woman who was born in Los Angeles, I wanted to pay homage to the people of the city I love, the original caretakers of Tovaangar. I set out to explore themes of invisibility, survivance and belonging to a place, from an Indigenous perspective. I wanted to explore the complexity of urban spaces, where the original caretakers of the land are so often a minority among the displaced urban Indian population. I wanted to convey that Los Angeles is a Native space; that the Tongva People are here, and that it is our responsibility—whether we are Native or not—to educate ourselves about whose land we are on. I wanted to bring critical public awareness to the fact that the First Peoples of the city with the second-largest Native American population in the United States do not have Federal Recognition and therefore lack access to scholarships, land allocated by the federal government, and other resources. (This is also true for the city with the largest Native population, New York City).
This portrait is of Weshoyot Alvitre, an amazing illustrator and Tongva descendant, and was taken underwater in May of 2021 in Long Beach, California. The headpiece is made of shells and the basket is for gathering. The fishing nets remind us of Weshoyot’s grandfather, and the cottonwood bark skirt, by Leah Mata Fragua, "floated so beautifully in the salt water. I hope you felt weightless in the water with me. Please follow @weshoyot and @tongvaland and support Weshoyot as she takes on the work of her people and land.”
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This photograph depicts a woman underwater holding a basket, with fishing nets surrounding her figure. The woman takes up the center composition, she floats with her body facing the viewer, and her gaze looking downwards to the left side. She wears a white headband that wraps around her forehead, and her hair flows down towards her shoulders. She holds a cone-shaped basket on her left arm, which is extended outwards, and her right arm is bent, and hands are pointed towards the basket’s rim, across her body. Her skirt is a frayed-like texture, and flows down to her knees, her legs extend and point down toward the lower center of image. There are fishing nets surrounding her, one on the top left, and one towards the lower right. The fishing nets float and curve within the water. The background of the image is a darkish brown, contrasting her figure, and white specks reflect bubbles within the water.
Turning to the left, towards the adjacent wall, is the next piece. The wall label reads:
10. ‘James Luna
Petroglyphs in Motion I-V, 2002
Chromogenic print, Edition of 6, 2 Artist’s Proofs
“James Luna’s work engages with satire, pop culture and irony—addressing social issues of belonging affecting First Peoples in the Americas. Petroglyphs in Motion (commissioned by SITE Santa Fe, New Mexico in 2000), is a series of photographic works where Luna portrays a range of characters in a performance-based installation. Using the petroglyph as a starting point, Luna presents the Native person, exposing the myriad stereotypes and challenges they encounter in the modern world. Merging the “prehistoric” with the present, Luna challenges the prevailing Western narrative that de-centers Indigeneity and undermines the rich cultural contributions of Native Peoples. By animating these historical tropes with contemporary culture, Luna shifts the colonized narrative and reclaims ownership over the past, present and future.”
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James Luna (Payómkawichum, Ipí, Mexican-American, 1950–2018) was an internationally respected performance and multimedia artist and a resident of the La Jolla Indian Reservation in Pauma Valley. Luna presented his work at the 1993 Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; Santa Monica Museum of Art; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Hood Museum at Dartmouth College, New Hampshire; Getty Museum, Los Angeles; SITE Santa Fe, New Mexico; and the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. Luna was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017. He died in 2018, while attending a Joan Mitchell Foundation Residency in New Orleans.
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Petroglyphs in Motion I-IV, is a series of four images of Luna portraying himself as Native stereotypes. The photos are framed, and displayed in two rows, the top row staggered slightly towards the right. Within each image, Luna poses in the center amongst a white background.
Petroglyphs in Motion III, 2002, description (top left)
In this photograph, Luna stands at the center of the image, playing a colorful, saxophone-like toy. His eyes are closed and brows are furrowed, and denote a forceful energy as he blows into the toy instrument. The toy instrument has a red mouth piece, and a long, yellow pipe with purple buttons, and is hung around his neck with a black band. At the base of the toy, there is a purple rim around a yellow surface, resembling a speaker. His body is turned towards the viewer’s left, with his left foot placed in front of his right; both are bent slightly. His arms are bent as they hold and press the toy’s purple buttons. He is wearing a burnt-orange hat, with a white band around the hems with a triangle pattern, and attached to the top of the hat are red feathers. He wears a yellow robe with tassels on the hems, and beige pants with fringes at the sides. His shoes are light blue, and have a pattern of red and yellow diamonds. Placed on the ground towards the left, is a metal can with two one dollar bills placed inside.
Petroglyphs in Motion IV, 2002, description (top right)
In this photograph, Luna stands wrapped in a red blanket, holding a golf club. He stands with his feet wide apart, and his figure is covered entirely by the cloak. The folding of the cloak looks as if he has his arms folded across his chest to cover himself. The center of his face is slightly visible, and he is seen gazing directly at the camera. A golf club extends out by his face, towards the left. The cloak is red, with a striped pattern consisting of a gradient of white, yellow, dark reds; and draped down to the ground by his feet. His legs are visible, with the cloak hanging above his knees. His shoes seem to be made of cloth and are red, and have yellow flaps at the center.
Petroglyphs in Motion I, 2002, description (bottom left)
In this photograph, Luna is posed mischievously, in a stance that looks as if he is waiting to pounce on prey. A white-tipped fur tail is attached to his bottom, signaling a portrayal of an animal. He is posed diagonally in a lunge position towards the left, with his left leg forward and bent, and his right leg bent back, and heel upward. His arms are bent upwards, and his hands rest in a paw-like form in front of him. His head is turned, with his gaze directly towards the right. His lips are pursed in a small frown, in a contemplative expression.
Petroglyphs in Motion II, 2002, description (bottom right)
In this photograph, Luna is standing in a powerful stance, gazing to the right with a leather whip held in his left hand. He stands with his feet apart, with his body turned towards the viewer’s right, his arms held at his sides. He is wearing a black hat, sunglasses, a leather vest, a studded belt, and black briefs. He has blue wristbands on both wrists, and a metal armband on his right, upper arm. He is wearing yellow, loafer-like shoes.
Moving on to the left, is the next piece. The wall label reads:
11. River Garza
Sky Coyote #1, 2023
Acrylic, spray paint, chalk pastel, color pencil
“This work is a depiction of the coyote, a central figure in Tongva origin oral narratives. The use of the coyote figure takes on a variety of meanings in my work; either as a portrayal of myself or a reference to their presence within our creation stories. The coyote featured in this piece is a celestial being, one of our relatives that exist among the stars. In this image, the coyote is depicted holding a ti’at paddle, a reference to Tongva maritime culture.”
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River T. Garza is an Indigenous interdisciplinary visual Artist based out of Los Angeles. Garza is Tongva, Mexican, and he is a member of Ti’at Society. His work draws on traditional Tongva aesthetics, Southern California Indigenous maritime culture, Chicano culture, Mexican art, graffiti, skateboarding, and lowrider art. Garza often explores the intersection of Tongva and Chicano/Mexican identity, history, and culture through his art practice. His work can be found in permanent and private collections.
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This piece depicts a coyote wearing sunglasses, holding a paddle. The coyote is drawn in orange, and yellow hues; and has a ragged texture. The coyote is depicted standing up, and the image cuts off below his waist. The paddle’s pole is long and thin, and is held in its left hand, and points towards the right corner. The paddle is of an oval shape; it is rendered in beige and yellow hues. The piece has a black background, yellow lines outline the coyote’s figure and paddle. The coyote wears striped pants rendered by white lines. The background has patches of yellow, blue and red, colored in by chalk pastel. On top of these patches of color, and surrounding the coyote, small crosses and tally marks made in yellow and red. The word ‘IITAR’ is repeatedly written around the background, some iterations include an exclamation point.
Moving onto the left is the next piece. This piece is on a white pedestal stand, placed in front of the wall. The wall label of this piece reads:
12. “Jessa Calderon
Basket Weaver, 2023
Juncus coil, deer grass
“The Basket’s name is Good Vibes Only. The markings in black represent energy. The purpose of the basket is to make people happy when they view it. As well as to be used to hold/gather medicines.
Made as part of Nohaarxe Miyii Pokuu, this basket is as an act of cultural revitalization and reclamation.
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Jessa Calderon is the Land, Water and Climate Justice Director for Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples. She is a songwriter, published author, poet, hip hop artist, performer, basket weaver, paddler, hypnotherapist, massage therapist, energy worker and offers guided meditations. As a member of the Dream Warriors society she encourages our community to find their healing mentally, physically and spiritually by sharing her words, music and practices. Jessa has had the honor to work with community and youth from many Nations, helping them find themselves while helping them to feel good.”
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This piece is a handwoven basket, and is 12 x 3 inches. The basket is of a light beige color, with specs of dark brown around the surface of the basket. The basket is tightly coiled, and its shape grows wider in circumference around the center height of the basket, and then grows smaller towards the rim; creating a more closed-off shape. The basket has a dark brown band, a centimeter around the rim, and another band slightly above the center height of the basket. In Between these two bands are four pairs of diagonal, parallel lines. The lines point towards the right, and are placed at four points of the circumference, equidistant from each other.
Moving onto the left is the next piece. This piece is framed and hung on the wall. The wall label reads:
13. ‘Weshoyot Alvitre
Tovaangar (A Seal of), 2022
Serigraph, Ed. of 62
“Tovaangar (A Seal of) is a response to the history of the City of Los Angeles, TOVAANGAR. The Tribe’s story is interwoven with the effects of colonization and intermarriage directly associated with the Mission System and Spanish caste system headed by Franciscan monks, led by Junipero Serra. Serra was not only responsible for the colonization and enslavement of Native communities from Baja to San Francisco but was directly involved in the San Gabriel Mission’s establishment, which paved the path for the City’s formation. The current seal of Los Angeles has been amended over the years to reflect a Tongva/Gabrielino woman. However, she is still dressed in European clothing with an air of westernized female servitude, reinforcing an illusion that the Original people were primitive hunter/gatherers and passive to colonial efforts.
This print depicts a Tongva woman in traditional regalia and ceremonial objects. I seek to reassert the narrative that the Tongva are a sovereign nation and that Native women can also have a place in political power, serve as medicine people and chiefs, and collectively make decisions for the betterment and welfare of their people. Despite colonization by the Franciscans, the Mission System, and the United States Government, WE ARE STILL HERE. This land is unceded Tongva lands.”
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Weshoyot Alvitre is a Tongva & Scottish comic book artist, writer and illustrator. She was born in the Santa Monica Mountains on the property of Satwiwa, a cultural center started by her father Art Alvitre. She grew up close to the land, raised with traditional knowledge that inspires the work she does today. Alvitre has made a conscious choice to work primarily within Native-owned publications and educational avenues, to further support a self-funded narrative on past, present and future Native issues.
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This piece is an illustrated portrait of a woman who stands holding a sheathed, dagger-like object and is rendered in a comic-like style. The woman stands with her body and gaze facing the viewer, her arms are bent and crossed in front of her chest, and she holds the sheath of the dagger with both hands. She wears a ring of white shells around her forehead, and hooped earrings, and she has two lines that extend from the outer corners of her eyes. Three pairs of lines are seen below her bottom lip, one that starts at the center of her lip and extends down to her chin, and two that extend from the bottom corners of her lips down to her jaw. The woman has long hair which flows down and in front of her chest. Her skirt is made up of three rows of white tassels, attached at the bottom are long, green feathers which stop by her knees. She stands barefoot, with her heels together. The background is white, and surrounding the figure of the woman is a circular, ringed pattern. The first circle starts right behind the woman’s face and shoulders, and consists of a black background with small, white circles. The next circle is larger, with roughly an inch diameter, from the figure, and is of a light teal color. The top of the circle inverts inward, which is defined by two ends pointed toward each other, that curve inwards and connect again, making a ‘C’ shaped on the left, and an inverted ‘C’ on the right. In the middle of the circle, is a thin line, marking another circle around the woman; the line at the top is not connected, leaving space between the larger circle’s absence. There are two additional rings around the teal circle, one is made of a frayed, bold line, the outermost circle consists of small squares with a dot in the middle. By the woman’s shins, there are three, black wavy lines. At her feet, a circle, with a similar shape to the teal circle is drawn around her feet. The bottom of the circle is in the same inverted ‘C’ shape and placed at the center. Below the circle, ‘TOVAANGAR’ is handwritten in all caps. To the right of this, is the artists’ signature: ‘WESHOYOT ALVITRE.’
Moving to the left is the next piece. This piece consists of three panoramas, which are hung staggered on two adjacent walls. The first of the three wall labels read:
14. ‘Lewis deSoto
HIGHWAY 18, 2014
K3 inks on archival paper
“A little over twenty-five miles from San Bernardino’s heat, smog, and variations thereof is the cooler alpine air of Crestline and Lake Arrowhead. If you follow Highway 18 all the way, you pass Big Bear Lake and then double back west to end in Apple Valley in the high desert. The Lake Arrowhead run became a racetrack of sorts for me to test the engines, tires, cooling systems, and brakes of various sports cars over the years, including a group of three Datsun Roadsters, a Triumph GT6, a Volvo P1800, and two different Opel 1900 variations. Between sprints, I would stop at various traffic cutouts and observe the valley below. This photograph was taken just after the four-lane highway runs into the narrow two-lane section that reflects the 1917 origins of this road. It wasn’t until 1933 that it could reach Big Bear Lake. It’s called ‘Rim of the World Highway,’ and it feels very much like that, particularly when the marine layer makes the valley disappear and you can only see the ridgeline, smell the smoke from wood-burning stoves, and at times catch a whiff of snow and pine bough.”
34°13’36.36” N, 117°17’0.09” W
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Lewis deSoto (born 1954 in San Bernardino, California) is an American artist of Cahuilla Native American ancestry and is known for multimedia installations, public art, photography, printmaking, and sculpture.
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This piece is a panorama depicting a landscape of mountains and a highway that trails into a further distance and landscape of plains. The mountains take up most of the composition, and its surface is of a green color. The landscape continues further past the mountains, and depicts a flat, plain with a dusty hue. A white line starts at around the center of the image, connecting the further landscape and the mountains, and trails downward to the right, until it is covered by the mountain in the foreground. On the left corner is a black pipe that lays horizontal. Patches of grass and flowers frame the corner and left plane of the image.
Turning left to the adjacent walls are the remaining two panoramas. They are stacked, staggered on top of each other. The bottom panorama is hung closer to the previous panorama on the right adjacent wall, and the top panorama is hung above the bottom, the right edge is placed at the bottom panorama’s center.
The wall label for the panorama on the bottom reads:
15. ‘Lewis deSoto
ONTARIO, 2014
K3 inks on archival paper
“The vistas of vineyards along Route 66 and the Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway (I-10) are now a collection of concrete logistical warehouses, shopping malls, and the Ontario International Airport. The ruins of a winery complex stand wrapped in white plastic and sealed off by chain link and padlocks just north of the runways. In the distance a FedEx jet taxies, and in the foreground the Santa Ana winds blow sifted sand onto crowds of black vines. When spring comes, they will push out leaves and Sangiovese Piccolo grapes that will ripen without the vine trimmers, without a harvest.”
34°2’34.04” N, 117°34’37.13” W
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This panorama depicts a desert-like plain with barren, leafless vines dispersed across the landscape. Trees and buildings are seen on the horizon line that starts at the top third of the image. In the furthest point of the image, there is a mountain at the center; it is faded, by clouds.
The wall label for the top panorama reads:
16. ‘Lewis deSoto
PALM SPRINGS, 2014
K3 inks on archival paper
“My father grew up at the mouth of Palm Canyon near the cooling pools of water in Murray Canyon. Now the area is a reservation park, and the little adobe house he lived in with his father, mother, and sister has long turned to dust. He told me that the canyon was the heart of who he was. The last time we went for a walk there he was beaten down by cancer in his leg and he made his way slowly, with a cane, down the steep hillside into the narrow V of the canyon. I made a videotape of him standing at this point. He wore light blue pants and a white shirt. He stood silently and looked down the canyon wall. We could hear water moving in the creek bed. As the sun drops behind the San Jacintos, a long, open shadow begins marching across the desert. This is the ‘magic time,’ as he called it, when the searing heat eased off our skin and we could look east from the shadow into the light as the silhouette of the mountains crossed from Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, into Indio.”
33°43’57.83” N, 116°32’8.43” W
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This panorama depicts a mountain side which is partially overcasted by a shadow. There are two hills which oppose each other and which creates a ‘V’ shape of the sky. The left hill is smaller, and has large rocks alongside its surface. The hill is shaded and is of a darker blue hue. Small palm trees are seen at the center plane, and alongside the left hillside. The shadow continues to the hill on the right side, and creates a dome shape alongside its surface. The hill on the right is of a light beige color, and small patches of grass are along the surface. The sky behind these hills is of a light blue color.
Moving along the wall and turning right, you will reach the next piece which is a video work. There are two wireless headphones placed on the wall, and seating can be found directly in front of the headphones. The wall label of this piece reads:
17. ‘Sky Hopinka,
Jáaji Approx., 2015
Video, 7 min 39 seconds
“This video logs and approximates a relationship between audio recordings of my father and videos gathered of the landscapes we have both separately traversed. The initial distance between the logger and the recordings, of recollections and of songs, new and traditional, narrows, while the images become an expanding semblance of filial affect. Jáaji is a near translation for directly addressing a father in the Hočak language.”
A line separates the work description from the artist bio which reads:
Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk Nation/Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians) was born and raised in Ferndale, Washington and spent a number of years in Palm Springs and Riverside, CA, Portland, OR, and Milwaukee, WI. In Portland, he studied and taught chinuk wawa, a language indigenous to the Lower Columbia River Basin. His video, photo, and text work centers around personal positions of Indigenous homeland and landscape–designs of language as containers of culture expressed through personal and non-fictional forms of media.
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The video starts with white text on a grey screen, the word ‘Jáaji’ is defined as a directed address of/to ‘Father’, and is an approximate translation from Hočąk. An audio of the artist noting the time and date of the recording can be heard throughout the video. The video cuts to footage of a drive towards a mountain range which suddenly flips upside down. There is white text in Hočąk overlayed at the center, and a voice narrating can be heard throughout the video. The video continues to feature handheld footage of the artist walking/driving on roads, paths and hillsides. The scenes vary in time of day and location: there are lakes, forests, reservation signage, and sea sides. The video cuts to a dark road, and an audio of someone singing can be heard. A gas station is shown at night, and cuts to footage of the sky and clouds, overlayed on top of each other. As the song continues, mountain landscapes and forests are overlaid over each other. The video continues to footage of highways, and footage of a drive. An iridescent and colorful exposure of a sea is seen, and merges into footage of a drive alongside a bridge; filtered to look like thin rays of light. The last scene of the video is a shot of a man sat in the passenger seat, he looks out into a landscape of the sea and returns his gaze forwards.
Moving towards the center of the gallery, is the last piece in this room. The piece is placed on a circular plinth. The wall label can be found on the wall by the Reading Nook. The wall label reads:
18. ‘Robert Dorame,
Tongva musical instruments, 2023
Wood, shell, leather, beds, natural materials derived from plants and animals
Hand-made instruments, arranged in collaboration with Mercedes Dorame, ranging from traditional to post-contact styles and materials including clapper sticks, bullroarer, rasp, turtle, can, deer hoof, gourd, and abalone shell rattles. These instruments are used in performances of Robert Dorame’s original music, which include multi-generational members of the Dorame family, inspired by their Tongva heritage.
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Robert Dorame is a Tongva Elder, musician and culture bearer. He acts as a consultant to the
California Native Heritage Commission and has consulted on numerous land development projects throughout the Gabrielino/Tongva territories for the past four decades. Robert has performed his music extensively and has led cultural presentations across the region, including performances at the Aquarium of the Pacific, Sherman Indian School, UCLA, the Getty Center, and CSU Dominguez Hills.
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On a blue, circular plinth, which has blue canvas cloth with white patterns, a collection of hand made instruments are placed alongside shells and replicas of stone objects. There are several clapper sticks, made out of various materials such as carved wood and shells. One of these instruments is made out of a turtle’s shell, connected to a wooden stick that has small, carved holes along its surface; a tassel is tied with a shell at the end of the stick. A can rattle can be seen on a platform, and is painted in blue with a shape of a sun on its surface; by the wooden handle, the word “TONGVA” is carved into the mental can. Another instrument is of a spherical, blue shape with a wooden handle. The blue sphere has a carving of a bird-like creature, and its handle has a zig-zag pattern carved into its surface. Above the center of the plinth, hangs a flat, wooden stick. Its ends are curved, and smooth, and at two opposite points, there is an iridescent circle, placed within the wood. By the bottom iridescent circle, the word ‘TONGVA” is carved into the surface. One small stone has smooth round curves around the circumference, resembling a flower-like shape. On the surface, colorful lines are drawn and depict a sunset alongside a landscape. This stone was created by Mercedes Dorame’s daughter – three generations of the Dorame family are intertwined with this installation.
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