Who I am
S
ome of the words I would use to describe myself are: maker, museum person, baker, potter and cat lover. I was born and raised in Oakland, CA and currently live / work in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta) as the Lead Preparator for the Art Gallery of Alberta.
I received my undergraduate degree in Comparative Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley and my graduate degree in Museum and Field Studies from the University of Colorado, Boulder. I have worked in the cultural sector at museums, libraries, galleries, archives, private collections and companies in California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Canada. Outside of work my passions include: ceramics, basketry, stained glass, knitting, cooking for family and volunteering in my community. Please feel welcome to contact me !
Where I am
O
akland (and the whole East Bay) is the place I love the most and I am so thankful to have lived there for most of my life. I also make art about Oakland. Today this area is a part of the beautiful unceded land of the Chochenyo-speaking Ohlone peoples and is also considered the territory of xučyun (Huichin).
This land by the Bay that I and so many others love has rolling hills, redwoods taller than buildings, oaks, acorns, and plants that feed people and animals. The creeks continue flowing under all the concrete. Surviving through two centuries of persecution and genocidal policies, Ohlone peoples continue to inhabit and care for this ancestral homeland.
I am currently settled in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta), where my partner was born and raised. This city, cut through by the North Saskatchewan River, is located on Treaty 6 territory and continues to be a gathering place for First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and all Indigenous peoples of Canada. Amiskwaciwâskahikan is the traditional gathering place for many peoples including the Cree, Blackfoot, Métis, Nakota Sioux, Iroquois, Dene, Ojibway/ Saulteaux/Anishinaabe, Inuit, and many others.
By offering these acknowledgements of traditional territories, I wish affirm Indigenous sovereignty and recognize my own role in settler colonialism. As a settler I continue to participate in and benefit from the occupation of this land. If you also happen to be non-Indigenous living in the Bay Area, one action we can take to acknowledge ongoing settler colonialism and support Indigenous communities is through the Shuumi Land Tax and the Sogorea Te Land Trust . To learn more about what lands you are on, you can check out this great map . I also hope everyone will seek to learn more about land acknowledgments, and what steps we can take to go beyond a performative action and actively work to undo Indigenous erasure.
What I am good at
Talking to people
Working with art and artifacts
Being super organized
Community outreach
Research and deep dives
Being a part of a team
Exhibits fabrication
Databases and data analysis
Mount making
Working with students
Relationship building
Collaboration
Public speaking
Caring for collections
Communication
Finding connections
Getting obsessed with details
Translating to the visual
What I believe in
believe so deeply in the potential of museums and the power they can hold to be agents of change in their communities. As museum people we tell stories and we care for culture. We also have a lot of work to do
I
when it comes to serving both our audiences and museum workers. I am still learning (and will always have more to learn), but some of the beliefs and concepts that really drive me in my work and in my life are: finding joy, listening, honesty, transparency, generosity, care, teamwork, intersectionality, anti-racism, equity, inclusivity, accessibility, decolonization and anti-colonization, Indigenous sovereignty, liberation, and abundance.
I've posted lots of links to brilliant thinkers discussing how we can build a better museum world, as well as personal resources that have helped me.
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How can we begin to decolonize a very Western institution that has been so intimately linked to the colonization process? A decolonizing museum practice must involve assisting our communities in addressing the legacies of historical unsolved grief. Doing this necessarily cuts through the veil of silence...
- Amy Lonetree, Decolonizing Museums