Understanding artistic production as a component of the Red Power movement

I propose that this research be driven by three main methods of investigations. Firstly, I will
analyse art to identify whether the rationales and ideologies underpinning Indigenous art in the Red
Power era conformed with those underpinning Red Power activism. In doing so, I will engage with
postcolonial and critical theory to identify similarities between art and direct protest. The work of
Homi Bhabha and Jean Baudrillard will be essential here, though I will look to privilege Indigenous
theory (such as Gerald Vizenor) wherever possible. Previous projects I've undertaken have identified
these theories as valuable in analysing how art can absolve through irony Euroamerican simulations
of the "Indian". This use of irony has been recently identified by Sam Hitchmough (2020) as a 'lost
contour' of the Red Power movement's performative protest, thus highlighting the potential of this
analytical methodology. Secondly, I will utilise contemporary interviews and primary material to
understand the extent to which art was understood contemporaneously as part of the Red Power
movement. I will utilise traditional archives, such as the Roger A. Finzel Papers in New Mexico, and
the Alcatraz archives in San Francisco, as well as interviews with artists that can be found in many
national and local papers. Akwesasne Notes may also prove valuable, since its editors often
published reviews of art shows and poetry from its readers. Finally, I will look to conduct oral
interviews with those involved in the movement (including artists) to fill gaps in the archives. I will
look to utilise oral history as the backbone of my project, demonstrating that despite the concerns of
David Silverman (2020) and others, oral history constitutes a central - and perhaps necessary -
component of Native American history. In utilising these three approaches, I would investigate the
validity of integrating the currently distinct threads of the Red Power movement and art. In doing so,
I hope to push Red Power narratives in yet another direction, whereby we consider the artistic
productions of the period as part of, not running alongside, Red Power. Such a project will thus help
to further eschew narrow understandings of Red Power as limited to high-profile direct protest. This
will serve to fill gaps in the scholarship of both fields, whilst introducing to Red Power studies an
increased utilisation of oral histories.
Since my project utilises a strongly interdisciplinary approach, I am hoping to undertake this
project in the University of Kent's Centre for American Studies, where this interdisciplinarity will be
well supported. David Stirrup expressed an interest in supervising this project. His expertise in
indigenous literature, and more recently art as protest, overlaps significantly with my focus.
American Studies would allow me to request support also from historians in the Centre, such as John
Wills, to ensure that my thesis, whilst interdisciplinary, represents first and foremost a work of
history, for it is this integration of culture (and specifically artistic productions) into history that Red
Power scholarship lacks. Furthermore, Kent's Centre for Indigenous and Settler Colonial Studies
would allow for both greater engagement with scholars working in a similar field, and more support
for the research methodologies I hope to utilise. The Centre's emphasis on establishing connections
with Indigenous communities whilst centring Indigenous voices is consistent with my own
motivations, particularly in relation to my proposed use of oral histories. Furthermore, the Centre's
strong focus on research ethics is something I hope can direct my study. It is thus my belief that the
University of Kent, the Centre for American Studies, and the Centre for Indigenous and Settler
Colonial Studies would be well suited to support me in my project, both in providing expert scholarly
support and a forum in which I can present my ideas.