PROVENANCE
Collection of the Artist

The Thunderbird and the Eagle are birds that figure prominently in Anishinaabe cosmology. Each has an important role: the Thunderbird maintains the balance between the skyworld and underworld, the Eagle communicates with the Creator. Both are symbols for protection and prayers. In Nesting Bneswak (Thunderbirds) and Nesting Mgizwak (Eagles) the sacred birds rest as mating pairs in the nests made of bronze wire. Their outlines are cut from copper, a metal with spiritual importance as it is said to be the blood of sacred spirits for the Anishinaabeg.

In each work, the nest sits atop an attenuator component which is part of an oscilloscope, an instrument used to display, interpret and test electrical voltages. When testing a circuit board, the attenuator allows for the adjustment of sine waves from an incoming signal ensuring that an electrical current is moving through without obstruction or overwhelming the circuitry with too high a load. By using this instrument, a malfunction can be located. For Barry Ace, the assemblage of electronic components, with the circuit boards attached on the base, becomes a metaphor for measuring the functioning state of a culture. Colonization, as well as ongoing prejudicial policies and legislation, have negatively impacted First Nations people living both on and off the reserve, including those who live in urban environments. The works are “urban-like representations'' of the nesting habits of these powerful birds. Ace states, “instead of mountain tops and tall trees, the nests are built on the vertical oscilloscope attenuator components that resemble skyscrapers where the thunderbird and eagle might rest.” With the increased Indigenous migration to city centres, maintaining a connection to one’s culture can be tenuous. The Nesting works “reimagine rural representations transporting the protective birds into an urban environment” to provide stability and cultural cohesion despite a changing landscape.

We thank Leah Snyder, digital designer and writer, The L.Project, for contributing the following essays. Snyder writes about culture, technology and contemporary art, and is a contributor to the National Gallery of Canada’s Gallery magazine and other Canadian art and architecture publications.

All quotes attributed to the artist unless otherwise noted.

This work is accompanied by a letter of authenticity and provenance signed by the artist.

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