04 Oct 2009, Posted by admin in the category

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ART EXHIBIT TO FEATURE THE MIXED HERITAGE ART OF LOUIE GONG:
Will be Held in Conjunction with American Indian Film Festival

October 12, 2009, BELLEVUE, WASH – You may have seen them on the web, heard about them from a friend, or even be lucky enough to own a pair of Eighth Generation custom shoes, but you probably haven’t had a chance to meet local artist Louie Gong and see the full array of his contemporary artwork that has sparked a cultural movement in the Pacific Northwest.  Now is your chance.  The “First Expressions: Rehumanizing the People” art exhibit featuring Louie Gong will be held in conjunction with the American Indian Film Festival at Bellevue College on November 5 – 7, 2009.

On the night of November 6^th, there will be free reception followed by the premier of a short film by Longhouse Media’s Tracy Rector called “UNRESERVED: the work of louie gong”.  The short film is the second in a series of artist profiles that Rector has created to highlight up-and-coming contemporary Native artists like Gong and Bunky Echo-Hawk.  The artist profiles are one way in which Longhouse Media co-founders Tracy Rector and Annie Silverstein are working to catalyze indigenous people and communities to use art and media as a tool for self-expression, cultural preservation, social change, and utilizing art to break down harmful stereotypes of Native people.

As part of Longhouse Media’s 2^nd Annual First Expressions exhibit, this will be Louie Gong’s first art show and is a unique opportunity to see the wide range of his work that has been featured across the internet on facebook, myspace, twitter, numerous blogs, and most recently on front page of the Arts & Entertainment section of “Indian Country Today”.  The exhibit will showcase Gong’s shoes, paintings, and several of his newest pieces – cedar skateboard decks.  His first cedar skateboard deck features a Coast Salish Dragon, an image that Gong has created to proudly represent his unique cultural heritage.

Featured artist Louie Gong is a mixed heritage person (Nooksack, Chinese, French, Scottish) who works as an activist “on behalf of people who walk in multiple worlds.”  In addition to his job as the educational resource coordinator at Muckleshoot Tribal College, he is board president of the MAVIN Foundation, one of the nation’s leading mixed race organizations.  His racial identity work has been featured on MSNBC.com, and he recently provided a keynote presentation for the National Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families conference.

Gong describes designing custom shoes as an extension of his activism on mixed racial identity and locates the meaning of his art in “the conversations that the shoes spark.”  In March 2009, he began merging Coast Salish art with Vans skate shoes to produce the perfect statement to represent his complex cultural identity.  While many are drawn to his shoes because they represent the confluence of multiple worlds, others simply appreciate Coast Salish art or the shoes’ freshness and originality.  In the past eight months, he has branched out to offer his art on new mediums including canvas, wood, and clothing.  Gong also designed the film festival’s t-shirts, which will be available for purchase along with his first run of prints.

This exhibit also highlights Gong’s peers within the Seattle Urban Indian community who have produced art in support and collaboration.  Tracy Rector, Victor Pascual, Clarita Begay, Dana Arviso, and Matika Wilbur will display their photographs, illustrations, film, and words that were inspired by their collaboration with Gong.  The contributors have noted that there is something special about their connections to one another and the support and energy that they glean from one another to do community-based work.  More information about the art exhibit, the artists, and previews of the work that will be shown can be found at the event website: http://www.firstexpressions.org

The “First Expressions” art exhibit and the American Indian Film Festival will be held on the evenings of November 5 – 7^th, 2009 at the Carlson Theatre at Bellevue College in Bellevue, WA.  Bellevue College’s main campus is located at 3000 Landerholm Circle S.E. at the intersection of S.E. 28th St. and 148th Ave. S.E.  The Carlson Theatre is located on the south courtyard of the Bellevue College main campus.  All festival events are free and open to the public.

For more information, or to schedule an interview with artist Louie Gong or filmmaker Tracy Rector, please call Stephanie Cote at (206) 240-5172 or email at info@longhousemedia.org