“In our way of life, in our government, with every decision we make, we always keep in mind the Seventh Generation to come…When we walk upon Mother Earth we always plant our feet carefully because we know the faces of our future generations are looking up at us from beneath the ground.”
Oren Lyons, Faithkeeper and spokesman for the Haudenosaunee Confederacy
We have a responsibility, not only to our own children, but also to the generations yet to come. I reflect on this quite often as I make decisions for myself and for my children, and in the path I follow in life. I was fortunate to be alive while my great-grandmother was still with us. She is three generations back, and in her lifetime she reached back to our relatives three generations before her. In a time when the land was still clean, and all of our people spoke the Kanienkehaka language, we were the seventh generation they held in their heart.
Our relatives survived the attempted genocide of our people. They survived disease, warfare, prejudice, displacement, deceit and injustice. It is nothing short of a miracle the gifts that they were able to leave for this generation. I am forever grateful to them, when I hear the tiny, yet proud voice of my six-year-old daughter reciting the Thanksgiving Address in her Native tongue. Our elders live on in the seeds that grow in our gardens bringing us sustenance. They are part of the fire, in the strings of wampum that we cherish. They live on in our hearts and minds as we make decisions that will affect the future generations.
The Haudenosaunee believe that everyone is born with a gift from the Creator. Perhaps one might be a teacher, a great lacrosse player, a musician, an orator or, in my case, an artist. This gift is precious and carries with it great responsibility, a responsibility that is evident in all of the work included in this show. The artists, in their own way have created a visual language of icons, symbols and imagery that have the deepest roots in their culture, and who they are today. They have used their gifts to communicate a teaching, a philosophy, a belief or their own unique understanding, through a variety of media.
Today our generation faces new challenges including diabetes, heart disease, pollution of the sacred earth, water and air, the loss of our language, culture and way of life. In this Western world of “Me and Now” that surrounds us we struggle to maintain the wisdom of our ancestors. We need to ask ourselves: “What are we leaving for the 7th Generation?” This exhibit asks that question of Seven Haudenosaunee artists, who respond visually through various mediums including prints, mixed media, video and installation.
