Artwork copyright G. Peter Jemison. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016.

Artwork copyright G. Peter Jemison. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016.

Artwork copyright G. Peter Jemison. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016.

Artwork copyright G. Peter Jemison. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016.

Real Indian Land Claims, 2000

G. Peter Jemison
American Haudenosaunee Confederacy Seneca (born 1945)

Location: University of Washington, Seattle

About the Artwork

Real Indian Land Claims is a collaged and painted sculpture of a paper bag by Jemison. The artwork was created in response to tensions between Native Americans and non-Native peoples during regional land claim disagreements in 1980s Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca County, in Central New York State. One side of the bag depicts a fictional event with an Indian man being taken into custody by vigilantes. The opposite side portrays hooded Klansmen holding anti-Indian signs that were actually found along the region's roads during that time.

This artwork is part of the Contemporary Native American Artwork Collection, on view at the University of Washington Gallagher Law Library in Seattle. The collection was proposed by artist John Feodorov, who selected the eight represented artists for their rich and forward-thinking cultural expression. Speaking to the contemporary nature of this collection, Feodorov notes “since art, like law, is an ever evolving process, it cannot rely on nostalgia if it is to remain relevant."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with University of Washington.

About the Artist

Jemison is based in Upstate New York. He is an active member of the Heron Clan of the Seneca Nation of Indians. Jemison studied art at the University of Siena in Italy, before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Arts Education from Buffalo State College, as well as an Honorary Doctorate. He is an authority on Haudenosaunee history and repatriation.