Presenting Absence
Beading is something that connects me to being Anishinaabe and, more importantly, being in community with other Anishinaabe artists. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I became particularly engaged with digital beading circles: as a community separated by a disease disproportionately impacting Indigenous communities, beading became a way to connect in our contemporary cultural worlds. I still have, and treasure, the small bead kits and projects sent to me by aunties and beading mentors.
When I originally conceived this dress, I imagined a beautiful gold beading–a reference to the murder of Chantel Moore and her well-known favorite phrase, “Stay Golden.” As I began to work on the beaded piece, something else emerged. I thought of all the beaded pieces that remain unfinished because Indigenous women are killed. I thought of the women beading things for themselves. I thought of the women beading things for others. I thought of the aunties and mothers beading graduation caps and prom dresses for girls who would never come home.
I wondered how many unfinished gowns, sashes, earrings, and medallions wait in closets, drawers, and boxes.
miskobagizi 