September 2024 / keep-sake

keep-sake by Sophia Anderson

September 05- 28, 2024
Opening Reception / Thursday, September 05, 5–8pm

Summer Hours:
Friday–Sunday, 12–5pm

STATEMENT:

Three eagles take flight from their nests behind the tsunami tower. They circle above me: Past, Present and Future. 
They write to me in their flight pattern: “this is where you are supposed to be”. These are singular moments, where the voice of the ancestors speaks to us in the language of the land. 

Moving home, and as we struggle under the weight of boxes, we look up to see a meteor shower spreading stars across the sky, like a thrown handful of glittering sand.
“You are surrounded by abundance”.    

Memory is not panoramic. Sometimes, all we clearly remember is a glimpse or gesture. From the first walk I took to the beach after moving back to this reservation that I grew up on, my only vivid recollection is of blue-gray rocks and red pine needles on the pathway. I began to record these details to see if I could begin to piece together a greater message.

 My chicha (grandmother), Lorraine Anderson, was a master bead-worker. I began learning to bead after her passing, in an attempt to better understand who she was. These beaded paintings are how I capture individual moments of how my life fits into this ancient coastline, through a practice that connects me to my heritage and community. Every bead is placed with attention and reverence. 

BIO:

Sophia Anderson is a member of the Shoalwater Bay Tribe, and grew up on the reservation, located on a rural corner of the Pacific coast. She is a watercolor painter, bead-worker and SOIL member.