wâpan (dawn, early morning)

cyanotype treated jacquard cotton, ridged dentalium shells, black lip shell, sweetgrass braid, grey felt. 8.75×11.25″

When I created the next cyanotype print, having previously used medicine on my last piece, I decided to follow through with that idea and lay two sweetgrass braids and a sage bundle on the fabric to expose. The hand is actually a palmistry guide I have on a shell in my house, and the pieces on the side are all rocks and crystals which have been gifted to me throughout my life.

Attached to the crystal exposures are pieces of dentalium – small shells often used as a form of currency across many Indigenous tutions-and in nehiyaw cultures it is often a sign of wealth or prestige. These pieces are ridged dentalium, which are often seen as a “lesser” form than their smooth counterparts, but the idea of wealth and value is something I often spend time thinking about.

I sewed one of the sweetgrass braids I used to expose the print to the fabric piece, and this was a braid that was gifted to me by my cousin on my father’s side after we had not seen each other for quite some time.
In the palm of the hand is a black lip shell I received as a gift in on of my beading orders from an Indigenous bead supplier – one of two which both make an appearance in these pieces.