From Skyworld to Cyberspace

Skawennati

In this exhibition, artist Skawennati (Mohawk, Turtle clan) gathers a number of works which, together, trace a line from our place of origin somewhere in the heavens to the virtual realm, one of the newest territories on Earth. The line sometimes curves, sometimes becomes invisible, but along it are Onkwehonwe - Indigenous people - alive and kicking. From Skyworld to Cyberspace is a result of Skawennati's continuous investigation of cultural construction, contemporary Indigenous self-representation is cyberspace, and of our relationships with the digital world. 

Skawennati investigates history, the future, and change from her perspective as an urban Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) woman and as a cyberpunk avatar. Her artistic practice questions our relationships with technology and highlights Indigenous people in the future. Her machinimas and machinimagraphs, textiles and sculpture have been presented internationally and collected by the National Gallery of Canada, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montreal and the Thoma Foundation, among others.

Recipient of a 2022 Hewlett 50 Arts Commissions Grant and an Honorary Doctorate from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, she is also a founding board member of daphne, Montreal’s first Indigenous artist-run centre. She co-founded and co-directs Aboriginal Territories in Cyberspace (AbTeC), a research-creation network based at Concordia University, where she received her BFA. Originally from Kahnawà:ke Mohawk Territory, Skawennati resides in Montreal. She is represented by ELLEPHANT.

This show is curated by Matthew Ryan Smith and circulated by McIntosh Gallery and ELLEPHANT.

All images courtesy of Katy Whitt