Cultural Iceberg and Indigenous Development

Person Information

• Stephen Robert Penner holds a Bachelor of Arts from Mount Allison University, a Master's in Indigenous Development from the University of Winnipeg, and a PhD in Rural Studies from the University of Guelph.
• His area of study is Indigenous Development.

Cultural Iceberg

• Easy to see: Language, folklore, fine arts, literature, food, holidays, and festivals.
• Difficult to see: Beliefs and assumptions, family roles, core values, relations to authority, biases, self-concept, body language, manners, interpretations, concept of cleanliness (hygiene), beauty ideals, family values, attitudes toward school, approaches to health and medicine, gender roles, concepts of justice, notions of modesty, competitiveness, attitudes toward the environment, child-rearing practices, work ethic, thought patterns, personal space, and aesthetics.

Announcements

• Potluck is planned (Yay!)
• RLA (Likely a class or program) is mentioned.

Introduction

• Traditional Greetings: Boozhoo nindinawemaaginidog! (Greetings, my relatives!)
• Name: nindizhinikaaz.
• Clan: nindoodem.
• Origin/Place of Birth: nindoonji.
• Identity: Anishinaabe-nindaaw is human being.
• Protocols for Circle Meetings: Explanation of protocols when speaking in a circle. (How speech starts and ends).

Wild Rice (Manomin) Harvesting

• Germination and Growth: Stalks emerge above the water in July, if water contamination and seedbeds undisturbed.
• Binding the Rice: Community members respectfully shared harvesting and ownership of rice fields. Similar to maple syrup harvest in the spring. Families share rice fields and groves of maple trees.
• Tools for Harvesting Manomin: The fork was able to grip soft muddy rice beds from disturbing the tender root bed.
• Knocking the Rice: Europeans' introduction of mechanical harvesting.
• Drying the Manomin: Wild rice needs air, sun, and sometimes fire to remove moisture before parching.
• Parching/Scorching the Manomin: Ensures removal of moisture.
• Hulling the Rice: Strong men perform this task. The process is continuous.
• Storing the Rice: One-third of the harvest is packed in birchbark containers and buried below the frost line.

Indigenous Wisdom and Teachings Concerning Wild Rice

• Key Knowledge about Wild Rice: Teachings within manoominike (the harvesting of wild rice) include respect, reciprocity, working for others, humility, gentleness, responsibility, balance, relationship aspects, and giving more than you take.
• Practical Knowledge Transmission: This is carried forward by the Anishinaabeg in relationship-oriented ways with knowledge and wisdom. Wild rice viewed as a teacher.

Artistic Identity and Sovereignty

• Multiple aspects of identity: Scared, secular, ceremonial, commercial, personal, & political are components.
• Masks and the Potlatch: Mask use in potlatches demonstrated sacred connection to history and cultural place.
• Sacredness and Connection: Art represents history, place, and connection.
• Gallery Setting Examples: Art can be viewed without the spiritual sacredness usually associated with it.

Coast Salish Potlatch Ceremony

• Diminished Potlatch Wealth: Potlatches were banned which reduced the ability to nurture, reciprocate, and give wealth to others.

Indigenous Arts

• Ethos of Indigenous Art: Indigenous Arts emerge from an ecosophy of place (the environment), time, and relationships. Art is renewal and construction of time and survivance (practice of continuing to exist and thrive), and is alive.

Indigenous Calendar

• Circular calendar with seasonal occurrences listed, which are associated with the moon.

Vigorous Indigenous Presence

• Vizenor's ideas: Indigenous stories are more than just endurance or response; they represent presence. The presence is very active.

Indigenous Art and Culture Continuity

• Indigenous Art & Culture has existed since time immemorial.
• Understanding needs to be related to time and through connections.
• Stories of Indigenous art must be conveyed by people who practiced the culture.
• There isn't a word for art in some languages.

Colonial Free Narrative Orientation

• Discussion of building a narrative in a colonial free orientation.

Anishinaabe Map

• Geographical region (likely in North America).
• Various settlements and tribes identified on a map.

Missing Data Concerns

• Cannon of Missing Work concerning Indigenous Arts and Culture. Issues of missing, misrepresented, destroyed, unknown, and unshared data.

Indigenous Migration

• James Redsky's scroll illustrates the start of the migration of Indigenous people, showing spiritual meaning.
• Creating and documenting places with specific names is important.

British Colonial Policies

• Proclamation Act of 1763 in British Colonial Policy is highlighted as a turning point.

Colonized Perspective of Indigenous Arts

• Collecting from a colonized perspective.
• Indigenous arts affect Indigenous history, culture, and art mediums negatively.
• Colonial record and seizure of valued possessions, seeing them as a prize. Treating them as a specimen or curiosity, and possession of unknown or exotic items.

Pueblo Vase (1969)

• A historical example of pottery.

Allan Houser (1965)

• Bronze sculpture of two people.

Film

• John Ford's Cheyenne Autumn (movie)

The Force of Nature Humbles All Men

• Oil on canvas painting (Howard Terpning, 2002). Painting of Blackfoot.

Tlingit Art

• Example of Tlingit art in a museum exhibit.

Métis Clothing

• Métis clothing exhibits around the year 1860.

Salmon Inspired Culture

• Salmon are considered relatives, spirits of inspiration for arts & culture.
• Rivers and forests are interconnected and essential.

Caring for the Land Using Fire

• Extensive use of fire by indigenous Californians in historical times for caring and tending the land.
• This had cultural meaning in relation to plants/animals and the natural world.

Explore the depths of cultural understanding through the lens of the Cultural Iceberg model. This quiz delves into visible and hidden aspects of cultures, specifically focusing on Indigenous Development and the effects of beliefs and values in society. Test your knowledge on these crucial elements that shape cultural identity and community dynamics.