The Native Justice Coalition asked me to create a billboard for the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Two-Spirit People. It was very important to me to not engage in traumatizing imagery, especially considering that this work would be shown within Anishinaabe Aki on a billboard in Michigan. The artwork was specifically intended to reflect and speak to Anishinaabe communities. I created an illustration showing a group of diverse Anishinaabe community members standing together and holding hands. Two-spirit people are included in the representations of people. I included heartlines on the bodies of the people to symbolize their power individually and together. As an artist and a designer working within Native communities, it’s important for me to consider the impact my professional work has on these communities, and to not create imagery that contributes to a sense of powerlessness or negative identities.
