Mini Assignment #11- Rebecca Belmore

Rebecca Belmore is an interdisciplinary Anishinaabekwe artist who is known for

her focus on identity, history, and places. Her work is shown by sculptures, videos,

photography, and performances. Belmore’s art strives to invert and subvert original

narratives while showing them with gestures and materials. She also addresses politics

and how they relate to forming people's identity and ideas of someone's representation.

Rebecca Belmore was also the first Indigenous woman representing Canada.

Rebecca Belmore dedicates themself to speaking up and raising awareness of her

surrounding specifically to Native American culture. Belmore uses aesthetic language to

embrace the beauty and importance to be accessible for people to understand. She wants

the audience to capture the connection and create a conversation of her art. Rebecca

Belmore being born into a large Anishinaabe family made her feel once silenced and

nourished by her roots. Thanks to the world of art she can express in any shape or way to

show her heritage.

Rebecca Belmore’s artwork called Fringe is to aware of the violence and

unfairness against first nations people. Women are the main people to be treated unfairly

in this situation. In her artwork, it shows a female laying down on her side, showing her

back with a slash-cut from her shoulder to her hip. In her cut, it’s sowed up by thin

rivulets of blood running from the gash with small red beads. This is one of the traumas

Belmore shows what Indigenous people felt and express. Even though this big cut will

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 heal at some point the scar will never disappear and symbolizes that Indigenous people

are strong and survivors.

Bandolier bags were around 1990, beads were their main material making this

shoulder bag. These bandolier bags were worn by European American soldiers and would

put their gun cartridges. A connection between the female position and the bandolier bag

is how it lays back from the shoulder to the hip. Violence brings out so much hate. It can

hurt someone very severely that can mark and scar them for the rest of their life.

Rebecca Belmore uses her art to express survivors, trauma, and identification.

From the beginning, Belmore never felt accepted because of her being Indigenous. Now

from her experiences, she learned how to transfer that negativity and racism to something

beautiful through her art. She uses the simplest materials to create something

monumental for the audience to see. Belmore does not only represent her ethnicity and

community helps people from different cultures to not feel outcasted because their

differences are unique.

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