Understanding artistic production as a component of the Red Power movement

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

I propose that this research be driven by three main methods of investigations. Firstly, I willanalyse art to identify whether the rationales and ideologies underpinning Indigenous art in the RedPower era conformed with those underpinning Red Power activism. In doing so, I will engage withpostcolonial and critical theory to identify similarities between art and direct protest. The work ofHomi Bhabha and Jean Baudrillard will be essential here, though I will look to privilege Indigenoustheory (such as Gerald Vizenor) wherever possible. Previous projects I've undertaken have identified these theories as valuable in analysing how art can absolve through irony Euroamerican simulationsof the "Indian". This use of irony has been recently identified by Sam Hitchmough (2020) as a 'lostcontour' of the Red Power movement's performative protest, thus highlighting the potential of thisanalytical methodology. Secondly, I will utilise contemporary interviews and primary material tounderstand the extent to which art was understood contemporaneously as part of the Red Powermovement. I will utilise traditional archives, such as the Roger A. Finzel Papers in New Mexico, andthe Alcatraz archives in San Francisco, as well as interviews with artists that can be found in manynational and local papers. Akwesasne Notes may also prove valuable, since its editors oftenpublished reviews of art shows and poetry from its readers. Finally, I will look to conduct oralinterviews with those involved in the movement (including artists) to fill gaps in the archives. I willlook to utilise oral history as the backbone of my project, demonstrating that despite the concerns ofDavid Silverman (2020) and others, oral history constitutes a central - and perhaps necessary -component of Native American history. In utilising these three approaches, I would investigate thevalidity of integrating the currently distinct threads of the Red Power movement and art. In doing so,I hope to push Red Power narratives in yet another direction, whereby we consider the artisticproductions of the period as part of, not running alongside, Red Power. Such a project will thus helpto further eschew narrow understandings of Red Power as limited to high-profile direct protest. Thiswill serve to fill gaps in the scholarship of both fields, whilst introducing to Red Power studies anincreased utilisation of oral histories.Since my project utilises a strongly interdisciplinary approach, I am hoping to undertake thisproject in the University of Kent's Centre for American Studies, where this interdisciplinarity will bewell supported. David Stirrup expressed an interest in supervising this project. His expertise inindigenous literature, and more recently art as protest, overlaps significantly with my focus.American Studies would allow me to request support also from historians in the Centre, such as JohnWills, to ensure that my thesis, whilst interdisciplinary, represents first and foremost a work ofhistory, for it is this integration of culture (and specifically artistic productions) into history that RedPower scholarship lacks. Furthermore, Kent's Centre for Indigenous and Settler Colonial Studieswould allow for both greater engagement with scholars working in a similar field, and more supportfor the research methodologies I hope to utilise. The Centre's emphasis on establishing connectionswith Indigenous communities whilst centring Indigenous voices is consistent with my ownmotivations, particularly in relation to my proposed use of oral histories. Furthermore, the Centre'sstrong focus on research ethics is something I hope can direct my study. It is thus my belief that theUniversity of Kent, the Centre for American Studies, and the Centre for Indigenous and SettlerColonial Studies would be well suited to support me in my project, both in providing expert scholarlysupport and a forum in which I can present my ideas.