Ceremony

 

What does ceremony have to do with art? Well, everything...  Particularly the art that is found on this blog.  Most pieces are made traditionally, in ceremony.  The ceremony itself is as much a part of the artistic expression as anything else.

Ceremony is also connected to land, to the seasons, to the symbols imbued in the art, and to the ancestral sacred knowledge and traditions that inform and influence the various pieces.  Ceremony is also a way of bringing healing to the land, showing contrition and making reparations (please see: Reparations and Ceremony )

When I "graduated" through menopause, I decided to undertake a year of ceremony (see above blog link) and also to symbolically write on my body as a form of self-dedication to the land and the ancestors.  At first I thought the design could be the same as what is written on my drum (see: Bone Amulets and Drum ) -- as seen in the second photo, below.  I drew the design onto my wrist just to see what it felt and looked like!  My tattooist is a dear friend, who first learned stick and poke as part of traditional Inuit tattooing.  She incorporated the electric writing tool more recently, which is what she used for my wrists.  We spent a year in design of the final tattoo which feels like a beautiful expression of ceremony, symbol, and dedication to Mati Zemlya (Mother Earth).  

For those interested in exploring or co-creating ceremony, I am including a link to my Patreon profile, and also photos (at the bottom) of my 2021 brochure for services.  I have designed and facilitated various rites of life in addition to seasonal rites, including: marriage, death/ funeral, pregnancy, birth/ parental journeys, first blood, menopause, life changes/ transitions/ significant events.

Patreon Nikki Manzie