Promoting Native Arts and Culture through Environmental Collaborations

Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum

Loren Spears

EXETER, RI

Project Dates:

2011-2012

Tags

2013 CCX presenter, Leadership, Networking

Posted Date:

Dec 20, 2012

Tomaquag Museum promotes Native arts and culture through an environmental collaboration with RI Artist Holly Ewald,the Urban Pond Procession(UPP), and the Narragansett Tribal community. In this year-long project we had weekly workshops exploring the historical, cultural, and environmental impacts surrounding Mashapaug Pond where participants used art(photography, collage, painting, and poetry) to express their knowledge.This project provided economic benefits to each entity through many means such as overt income from revenues, grant funding,and less tangible items such as shared marketing, PR, and in-kind resources. It also provided opportunity for revenue generation through final products such as exhibits, art, and a book, Through Our Eyes, An Indigenous View of Mashapaug Pond.

Project Goals

What were the project goals?

The goals were to collaborate with Holly Ewald, UPP, and narragansett community to create a book. It was also to fulfill our goal to create books to express local native culture from a native perspective. Also, to positively impact each partner in the project by providing opportunity to impact their mission, educate and empower their community,and enhance their organizations ability to serve the public.

Have they changed over time?

The project goals and outcomes for partnerships have become more specific over time. All projects include art, Native culture and history, and the environment. New goals are how to better market the book; create it as an ebook; on line sales through Amazon.com and other virtual sites. Creation of contracts regarding rights of final products, roles, and responsibilities.

Who are the project partners and stakeholders?

UPP/Holly Ewald, Narragansett community participants, museum visitor’s, participants at Book discussions at Tomaquag and other locations, and others whose are connected to Native, art,Mother Earth and its resources. These projects served a variety of people from youth to elders from the Native community to the Rhode Island community as well as tourists from across the globe.

Project Specifics

How was the project implemented? What were the steps taken?

Holly reached out to us to partner with her on this project. We had preliminary meetings then followed up with specific meeting when the formal idea for collaboration was forged. We would assign roles, set dates for program, for follow up and evaluation. We would decide on how revenue would be generated and how split between entities and if needed, who would write grants to support project and how partner would support that process.

Have they been refined over time?

I think the process has become smoother over time. As we collaborate more and more we are clearer on our expectations and needs as well as the needs and expectations of our partners. We have clarified partnership agreements, roles, and responsibilities.

Obstacles

What were your major obstacles?

Our major obstacle is not setting clear expectations early in projects especially regarding revenue and ownership of final products/intellectual property rights and things like that. The other, is a project taking much longer than expected-time management.

Who or what was instrumental in overcoming these obstacles?

We are still working on clarifying these issues and working on contract language to make process easier.

What top three suggestions would you give to others attempting a similar project?

1. Know what your organization wants to gain in a partnership and what your organization can give. 2. Be clear and concise in project design, time line, roles, and responsibilities 3. Make sure you share what you really want/need and that you listen to what they really want/need

Project Impact

How has this project contributed to creative community building?

Partnering with UPP/Holly has increased our organizations revenue streams(direct programming, talks, book sales, & will have prints for sale soon). It has enabled us to access grant funding as the partnering organization.It has provided in-kind contributions of space, materials, technology resources, and intellectual resources. It has produced final products such as books and art that can generate revenue over time. These projects empower and fund artists(native & non-Native) and cultural, environmental, & art educators as well as administrative support.

How did it achieve your original goals?

We completed our year-long workshops, finalized the book, had book opening, and book talks. We were very successful in completing our original goals. We are still working on marketing & distribution of the book. We are also working on the ability to sell prints of artwork. We continue to achieve our goal to collaborate with other organizations to positively impact the public's view of Native culture, history and art and it's direct connection to the environment. The individual project goals were met and final project was completed with positive impacts on each organization and their mission. We achieved these goals by working collaboratively and with clear expectations, meeting and refining projects, and evaluated projects.

Were there unexpected impacts?

There were unexpected impacts such as the positive press on the Mashapaug book project has been fantastic,including a review by Cultural Survival's Phoebe Farris. The desire for authors & editors to speak about the book at other forums. The potential for a long-term revenue stream from the book and prints are all positive. The relationships developed through the project with Holly, Leticia(book designer), tribal community members/artists and other organizations interested in the book. However, the negative impact is that our small staff has to deal with all the requests and process & mail books all over the east coast. We are having to learn about book publishing, ebooks, online sales, marketing, and promotions.However, each partnership brings us new opportunities for future partnerships with them and other organizations. The most unexpected impact comes from the time sharing information, the intellectual gifts given between organizations are of the greatest value in the partnership.

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Promoting Native Arts and Culture through Environmental Collaborations