Tree Relations
Tree Relations is an ongoing relationship I am building with an oak tree. I often go to this tree to share meals, stories, relax, write, and contemplate. I created handmade paper from the tree and general surroundings and then gave the paper back to the tree and surrounding area.
Observed collaborators: oak tree, birds, squirrels, spiders, ants, various bugs, mushrooms, humans, and ...
Observed collaborators: oak tree, birds, squirrels, spiders, ants, various bugs, mushrooms, humans, and ...
The oak tree is located on the indigenous land of the Dakota/Anishinaabe also known as Minneapolis. It is not possible to talk about my relationship with this tree without acknowledging the physical context we continue to grow in and around.
Located just miles away from the largest mass execution in US History.
Federally recognized Native groups of Minnesota:
Bois Forte Band of Chippewa
Fond Du Lac Reservation
Gichi-Onigaming / Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
Lower Sioux Indian Community
Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
Prairie Island Indian Community
Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux (Dakota) Community
Upper Sioux Community
White Earth Reservation
MCAD Land Acknowledgment:
The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) acknowledges it is located on traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of Indigenous people. This is the ancestral homeland of the Dakota and Ojibwe people, who were forcibly exiled from the land because of aggressive and persistent settler colonialism. We recognize that this place has a complex and layered history. As a community dedicated to creativity, MCAD is committed to ongoing efforts to support and advocate for American Indian Nations and peoples.
This land is their land.
Located just miles away from the largest mass execution in US History.
Federally recognized Native groups of Minnesota:
Bois Forte Band of Chippewa
Fond Du Lac Reservation
Gichi-Onigaming / Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
Lower Sioux Indian Community
Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
Prairie Island Indian Community
Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux (Dakota) Community
Upper Sioux Community
White Earth Reservation
MCAD Land Acknowledgment:
The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) acknowledges it is located on traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of Indigenous people. This is the ancestral homeland of the Dakota and Ojibwe people, who were forcibly exiled from the land because of aggressive and persistent settler colonialism. We recognize that this place has a complex and layered history. As a community dedicated to creativity, MCAD is committed to ongoing efforts to support and advocate for American Indian Nations and peoples.
This land is their land.
2-week span of sheets of paper disintegrating back to their home.
Each sheet was documented approximately every 4 days.
Each sheet was documented approximately every 4 days.
It is fairly clear to me what the tree gives to me such inspiration, stability, and security. While initially building this relationship I questioned what I was giving back to this relationship. My first iteration was giving back handmade paper I made from the area and documenting the duration, my second iteration included notes of gratitude, poetry, questions, and journal entries.