by Jonathan Thunder, at the American Indian Cultural Corridor, Northern Spark 2019. Photo Credit: Ne-dah-ness Greene
by Jonathan Thunder, at the American Indian Cultural Corridor, Northern Spark 2019. Photo Credit: Ne-dah-ness Greene
For more images of Northern Spark 2019, visit our Flickr albums here. Watch our videos here: Northern Spark 2019.
Artist Jonathan Thunder’s Manifest’o features three separate, yet interconnected animated vignettes based on Ojibwe stories about connection to the land, sky and water. These connections live today through the stories and teaching that are actively being handed down from generation to generation. Thunder brings the spirit of these vignettes to the American Indian Cultural Corridor in a large scale projection that will illuminate the block of 14th and Franklin as part of Northern Spark. Manifest’o is traveling from the Tweed Museum of Art in Duluth, Minnesota, where it originated as a multimedia installation. The three individual stories included are Mishu Bizhiw Awakens, Gold Finch Counts the Leaves, and Supernaut Becomes the Water Lily. Thunder states about Manifest’o, “It’s important that people understand that these vignettes are my interpretation of stories I have heard throughout my journey as an Indigenous artist working within my community. They are a reflection of what I’ve learned through the stories that inspired me to create these animations. They also represent a resilient culture and community whose timeless voice can be heard today in the concrete landscape of 2019.”
Jonathan Thunder is a multidisciplinary artist who works in canvas painting, animation, filmmaking and 3D projection mapping. His work has been featured in many state, regional, and national exhibitions, as well as in local and international publications. Thunder has won several awards for his art/animation work on multiple projects.