Art as Sermon, the Indigenous Experience

Rabbi Nicolas L. Behrmann

29 Mar, 2023

Art as Sermon, the Indigenous Experience

https://desertx.org/dx/dx-23/gerald-clarke

Art as Sermon

Gerald Clarke

In the Coachella Valley it is not unusual for public events to begin with these words: “We acknowledge the Cahuilla People as the original stewards of the land on which we now gather. We are grateful to have the opportunity to work with the indigenous people in this place. We pay our respect to the Cahuilla People past, present, and emerging who have been here since time immemorial.”

Gerald Clarke is a prominent Cahuilla artist whose passion for his people’s tradition translates into his art works and his desire to prod us into being conscious of its presence and that of the indigenous people’s experience.

Visitors to the Palm Springs Art Museum might be familiar with his large rendition of a traditional Indian basket mounted on a satellite dish with the design formed of crushed cans, beer and soda. The beauty of the design is discordant with the appreciation that the former contents of these cans are an anathema to the health of indian reservation inhabitants.

Until May 7th another work of Gerald Clarke is available to visitors, his “Immersion” installation that is part of DesertX. A variation of the Indian basket theme, this is a board game whose theme is the indigenous experience globally, nationally, regionally and that of the local Cahuilla people. Visitors can access the trivial pursuit-like questions on their smartphones as they pursue one of four paths to the center from which they can find the graphic QR codes for a set of recordings of the American Indian peoples.

Whether via the Clarke Installation pictured below at the James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center in north Palm Springs or accesses the questions via the DesertX website, these questions might form the basis of a sensitivity training program in our faith communities about the indigenous peoples’ experience.

Both of these Gerald Clarke Indian Basket themed artworks are ‘Art as Sermon’ lessons for us about the need to appreciate the opportunities to experience the diversity of God’s creation.