John Willis

Indigenous Women Leading Frontline Action

Maker

John Willis (American, b. 1957 in Connecticut), (RISD MFA 1986, Photography)

Title

Indigenous Women Leading Frontline Action
from the series Mni Wconi, Honoring the Water Protectors

Year

2016

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Dimensions

Image: 46.8 x 70.1 cm (18 7/16 x 27 5/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

On verso in graphite: Indigenous Women Leading Frontline Action to Fontline Where the Dakota Access Pipeline is Being Buried in the Ground. When the Police Asked them to Turn Around and Leave with their Approximately 200 Supporters, they Agreed to Do So Only If the Police Joined Them in a Prayer for the Water. Once the Police Agreed, Prayed with the Group, and Drank Some Sacred Water, the Water Protectors Peacefully Returned to Camp. On Right: John Willis [copyright] 2016

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Richard S. Press and Jeanne Press

Object Number

2021.31.5

Type

Exhibition History

Take Care
Aug 20, 2022 – Mar 22, 2023

Label copy

Indigenous women are known to be leaders in their communities, as shown in this photograph taken at the No DAPL (Dakota Access Pipeline) protest camp in North Dakota. In 2016, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other Native Americans protested construction of the pipeline, as it posed a threat to sacred burial grounds and the quality of local water. Note the signs the women hold, reading “Defend the Sacred” and “Water Is Life.” Despite their protests, the 1,172-mile underground oil pipeline was completed in 2017. In its first six months of operation, it leaked five times.

–Sháńdíín Brown, Henry Luce Curatorial Fellow for Native American Art

Image use

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In copyright This object is in copyright

Tombstone

John Willis (American, b. 1957 in Connecticut)
Indigenous Women Leading Frontline Action; from the series Mni Wconi, Honoring the Water Protectors, 2016
Pigmented inkjet print
Image: 46.8 x 70.1 cm (18 7/16 x 27 5/8 inches)
Gift of Richard S. Press and Jeanne Press 2021.31.5

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