Artist and advocate Bunky Echo-Hawk will present an interactive live art performance April 16 at UNL. Echo-Hawk’s performance will begin at 7 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Kauffmann Center. The event is free and open to the public.
Echo-Hawk is a multi-talented artist whose ongoing goal is “to truly exemplify the current state of Native America through art.” He has updated an age-old tradition of interactive live art, which he has performed from coast to coast. Historically, many tribes would spend the winter months recounting the year’s hunting and battle exploits. An artist would facilitate the group’s stories, interpreting multiple perspectives of an incident and applying the group’s story on a stretched hide, creating a painting for the people. The painting would stand as a snapshot of the lives of the audience, their relationship to the universe at that time. Echo-Hawk’s live art experience is an updated version of this tradition.
A graduate of the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, N.M., Echo-Hawk is an artist, graphic designer, photographer writer and a nonprofit professional. He has exhibited his work in major exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally, and his poetry and plays have earned nationwide success. An advocate and educator, Echo-Hawk was a co-founder of NVision nonprofit collective and is a designer for the Nike N7 line, supporting Native American youth empowerment.
UNL’s literary journal, Prairie Schooner, will have copies of its winter 2012 issue featuring Echo-Hawk’s cover art available for purchase at the event.
The UNL Office of Academic Success and Intercultural Services (OASIS) co-sponsors Echo-Hawk’s appearance with the University of Nebraska Inter-Tribal Exchange, the Residence Hall Association and the University Program Council. This event is part of the Native American Heritage Celebration Series hosted by OASIS. Events include a student-led discussion on Native American cultural appropriations hosted by the University of Nebraska Inter-Tribal Exchange and UNL faculty and a student luncheon with Echo-Hawk hosted by the Residence Hall Association.
The OASIS mission is to enhance student success by promoting academic excellence, diversity awareness and social engagement. For more information, contact Ashley DiGregorio at adigregorio2@unl.edu or go to http://go.unl.edu/jgmcweek.
