Exhibition Notes

Welcome

A Shell in the Sky | Midewigaan Miigis | Miges is an immersive exhibition of Anishinaabe art, star knowledge, and living culture.

Centering the collective wisdom of distinguished elders, artists, cultural teachers, authors, and knowledge keepers, this collaborative exhibition invites visitors to learn from and with the stars through stories that have been tended on these lands since time immemorial.

Through the generosity of the Council of the Three Fires — Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodéwadmi — visitors are invited to experience Anishinaabe astronomy across multiple mediums, including basketry, beading, visual and performing arts, NSTEAM, and astrophotography, each reflecting the deep interconnections among land stewardship, water-sky relationships, language, and culture.

Visitors are guided by the teachings of esteemed elder, author, and star knowledge keeper Bwaananaabekwe Mary Moose, and by the lens of astrophotographer Mishiikenh Abraham Sutherland, whose images reveal the astrometry and teachings of Ojibwe constellations in a collection exhibited here for the first time.

Danielle Boyer, founder of SkoBots, presents an ingenious approach to engaging with art, constellation stories, and language through ethical, sustainable robot creations that reintroduce Anishinaabemowin to new generations.

Poet laureate and author Chris LaTray draws visitors into a closer relationship with each Anishinaabe moon, through personal reflections presented in meaningful birch bark.

Artist David Martin, alongside elders from Forest County Potawatomi, traces community relationships and ancestral teachings through the 13 moons in a turtle shell lunar calendar, connecting land, water, seasons, and moon phases through a guided exercise that offers students an opportunity to engage with relational mathematics.

Bmejwen Kyle Malott draws on historical ties and language connections to present Bodéwadmi star stories through an action-based digitally designed Star Map exhibited in a large-scale projection, creating an immersive, interactive experience.

Christina Rapp beads the snake constellation, illuminating how land-star stories have long been written, carried, and transmitted throughout generations in this art form.

Beading artist Iah Q presents a multidisciplinary work combining beadwork, language, illustration, and graphic design in a canvas dedicated to the universal significance of the Great Lakes Loon.

In the Library, books by Leonard Moose and Mary Moose including Maang Loon, Madoodiswan | Sweatlodge, Bagone-Giizhig | The Hole in the Sky, and Inhabiting the Earth deepen visitors' understanding of the universe and the Loon's profound connection to the stars.

Emmy Award–winning photographer, and professor Sharon Hoogstraten presents a selection of photographs from her series Dancing for Our Tribe, a reflection of astronomy, history, and cultural permanence, expressed in the regalia, gatherings, and stories of contemporary dancers and citizens across Potawatomi Nations.

Dylan Loonsfoot, a member of the distinguished Pigeon Family, presents an intricate strawberry basket that interweaves seven generations of artistry and teaching.

David Martin also presents artworks honoring the profound ancestral practice of indigenous tattoo, rendered on the heart of drum skin.

The sculptural and ceremonial Jingle Dress, created by dancer, fashion designer, and cultural steward Aerius Benton-Banai, offers a tribute to Mishibizhiw, the Underwater Panther: a spirit of deep historical, and geographical significance to the shores of Kishwauketoe | Lake Geneva, to the skies above, and to the waters of the Great Lakes.

In the dome, For Olivia Shortt, a movement from For Zitkala-Ša composed by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Raven Chacon, will set the sun of this exhibition in a live performance by saxophonist and sound artist Olivia Shortt. This relational concert honors Zitkala-Šá's Sun Dance opera, her body of Native American rights work, the four directions, and the astronomy encoded within the resilience of a musical score.

Noelia Cruz, curator

Boozhoo kids! Hello! Welcome to A Shell in the Sky.

Mary Moose, our wise elder teacher, says:

“When I am outside, I see stories. When I look at the trees, the animals, the stars, and the waters, I see stories.”

Where do you see stories?

Mary knows the first stories of the Great Lakes waters. She also knows how to read the stories written thousands of years ago by her ancestors in the stars. Throughout this exhibition, these stories are generously shared by our relatives, the Anishinaabe — the Indigenous peoples of the Great Lakes.

The beautiful artwork, robots, beadwork, baskets, and photography you see here were created by Indigenous artists and knowledge keepers.

Did you know that the Wolf, the Bear, the Loon, and the Moose are also constellations in the night sky? They each carry beautiful stories. Pokagon Band of Potawatomi teacher Kyle Malott shares some of these star stories with us.

The Turtle, the Fisher, the Beaver, the Snake, and the great Buffalo also appear in the Potawatomi, Odawa, and Anishinaabe star maps.

Which ones can you find in Abraham’s astrophotography?

How many can you spot in Danielle’s SkoBots?

Can you find Winter Maker Nanabozho in the constellation map projected in the library?

Every winter, when you see the three bright stars rising together in the sky, you’ll know that Nanabozho’s belt is shining above us. It is the constellation Big Foot, a name also carried by the great Potawatomi leader of these lands.

Artists, Elders and Knowledge Keepers

With deep gratitude for their generous support and guidance: Anishinaabemowin Teg • Anna East • Chickadee Community Services • Eighth Blackbird Exploration Institute • Forest County Potawatomi • Frank Sprague | Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi • Gichigamiin Indigenous Nations Museum • Illinois State Museum • Michaelina Martin | Pokagon Band of Potawatomi • Mnogishek, Jason Wesaw | Pokagon Band of Potawatomi • Nina Sánchez • Outdoor Learning School • Yerkes Futures Foundation