Baagaakige: It Makes A Sound Like Little Thunder

Exhibit Artwork

Behind the Scenes

About the Exhibit

Summer Bresette and Katie Wilhelm
June 23 - July 29, 2022
This exhibition is co-presented with the Office of Indigenous Initiatives at Western University.

Forest City Gallery is delighted to present Baagaakige by London-based artist Summer Bresette. Baagaakige features archival photos from the personal collection of Bressette’s family, with photography and audio design by Summer Bressette, and graphic design and projections by Katie Wilhelm. Baagaakige tells the story of Anishinaabe basketmaking as resistance to colonialism, and demonstrated through a family heirloom owned by Summer’s grandmother, a black ash hat that was made by great-great Grandmother Flora George. Anishinaabe basketmaking is not just an art form but a meditation, and a hope for the future.

The polyptych projections are titled in order: 1 – 4 (These are the prayers manifest, Of grandmothers and mothers, To protect their children, Created with love and intention). A didactic appears by the exit that reads: It began with a sound like little thunder - baagaakige. Bressette has created audio that locates visitors on the land of her community with familiar noises such as birds and thunderstorms, and the pounding of splint to make black ash baskets in the springtime. Land, language, and kinship informs Summer’s storytelling and are important elements of the Baagaakige exhibit.

Testimonial