Vā Moana Reading Group 03 2019

For 2019 the Vā Moana Reading Group will host four talanoa looking at various aspects of being in diaspora. In each talanoa we will bring together three texts spanning academic texts, think pieces, films and other artworks. The third reading group for 2019 will focus on the theme of ‘Futurisms’ and we are really excited to be hosting Mohawk artist Skawennati for this session.

Skawennati makes art that addresses history, the future, and change. Her pioneering new media projects include the online gallery/chat-space and mixed-reality event, CyberPowWow (1997-2004); a paper doll/time-travel journal, Imagining Indians in the 25th Century (2001); and TimeTraveller™(2008-2013), a multi-platform project featuring nine machinima episodes.

Born in Kahnawake Mohawk Territory, Skawennati holds a BFA from Concordia University in Montreal, where she is based. She is Co-Director, with Jason E. Lewis, of Aboriginal Territories in Cyberspace (AbTeC), a research network of artists, academics and technologists investigating, creating and critiquing Indigenous virtual environments.

For this session we will be looking at futurisms through three different viewpoints, we will discuss three texts:

• Robin D. G. Kelley (2002), ’When History Sleeps: A Beginning’ in Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination;
• Noelani Goodyear-Ka’ōpua (2018), Indigenous Oceanic Futures: Challenging Settler Colonialisms and Militarization in Smith, L. T., Tuck, E., & Yang, K. W. (Eds.). Indigenous and decolonizing studies in education : Mapping the long view;
• and Skawennati’s own TimeTraveller™ (2008-2013)

The reading group will be held on Wednesday 3 July, 2pm—4pm in the Vā Moana space WE425, Level 4 WE Building AUT, St Paul Street.

This is open to everyone. Spaces are limited so please RSVP to lana.lopesi@aut.ac.nz.