Photopress art tacoma8/3/2023 ![]() ![]() “I think that public art gives us a chance to see ourselves as part of a larger whole rather than just as single individuals, and helps us reflect on our shared values and goals as a community,” Tail says. She says, from an Indigenous perspective, there have been studies showing the positive influence art has on wellbeing and health. Tail is a member of the Cherokee Nation and co-found of yəhaw̓, an Indigenous creators’ collective. Local artist and arts organizer, Asia Tail says art is necessary for a just and balanced society. Through her creations, she processes different perspectives and narratives, and sometimes this means conflict, saying, “the pieces are a way to address the conflict between these histories.” ![]() That official history that is taught can be harmful, Feddersen says. “I was taught that the concepts of manifest destiny and that the settlers brought … trade, medicine, education, religion, all these things that were just completely untrue,” Feddersen says. In particular, Feddersen says she wanted to address “manifest destiny.” Feddersen is a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. “The NEXUS piece is thinking about a kind of imaginary, trading interaction between Puyallup, Coast Salish and plateau, interior Salish tribes, which is where I’m from,” Feddersen says. NEXUS completed in 2019 on the Prairie Line Trail. Her display shows what trade may have looked like before European settlers came to the area. “It was really a good opportunity for emerging artists, artists who hadn’t done as much permanent work, and a chance to get different voices, you know, have different voices telling the story.” And so we decided with that project, instead of doing a big public art project, to break it up into smaller pieces,” Solverson says. “There’s so many stories on that trail, there’s so many layered histories. “Tacoma was just lucky to get her first permanent piece,” Solverson says, which was one of five commissioned by the Washington State Historical Society for the Prairie Line Trail. This was the case for Feddersen, who worked as a studio assistant for a public artist, and worked for 4Culture, the cultural funding agency for King County, before breaking into public art.įeddersen moved to Tacoma in 2019 while working on her first public installation - NEXUS. Solverson says emerging artists in the public art space often have established studio practices and just haven’t had a chance to break into the public art world. Rebecca Solverson is the City of Tacoma’s public arts specialist. Getting commissioned to create such an installation can be a challenge. “And I’m kind of looking for openings to invite the audience into developing that understanding and meaning.” “I think of art as being very meditative, and a way of understanding the world,” Feddersen says. She looks for ways for people to engage with the art, and bring them into the experience. This connection to history and place is a common theme in Feddersen’s work. RYAN! Feddersen’s installation, “Mini-Tahoma,” at the now inactive Waterwall fountain in downtown Tacoma. ![]()
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