“Within those apartment buildings are Anishanaabe in both modern and traditional aspects of native life such as drum practice, hair braiding as they get ready for powwow.”
Jamie John’s painting is one of three murals pulling the thread of cultural history from the tribe’s origins to modern Anishinaabe living their daily lives.
“There's a wheelchair user representing more of the disabled, a resident with his kids, going out to coffee. Someone getting back from the grocery store and pharmacy to have a little representation of access to healthy seasonal ingredients for food and adequate medical care.”
Justin Johnson and Brittany Benson also created murals depicting the stories of the Anishanaabe creation and The Three Fires.
The new murals are a chance to celebrate Anishanbek culture. The artwork is part of the 30-year-old museum exhibition renovation adding technology, natural elements, connections to the Grand River, and topics important to today’s Anishinaabe.
“The knowledge that native presence in this territory is not only our history, but it is the history of the land. It is history of this territory. That we still very much have a relationship to the Grand River, to the waters of Lake Michigan, to the creatures and the plants that thrive and are trying to thrive again.”
The exhibit, “Anishanabek: The People of this Place, is scheduled to re-open fall of 2026.
