Kelly Church (Grand Traverse / Band Ottawa / Chippewa)

Crane Plague Doctors Mask and Doctors Bag of Healing

This piece is dedicated to my great grandmother and her sisters who were the community doctors and used herbs and medicines they collected from Michigan woods and forests. These medicines also included good thoughts as they worked on those they were assisting in a healing process. The words written on the inside lid of the suitcase are words to live with and by for a better world and tomorrow. The hands on the cape represent our missing and murdered Indigenous Men and Women and Native Children who were taken to boarding schools and never made it home. May we acknowledge truths and begin a healing process good for all.

Breathe (Front)

This word is something not to be taken for granted. For some it is never thought of, just something that we all do each day. For some it is a privilege, and the right to breathe is used as a weapon against them, for some it is a right to breathe on whoever and whatever they wish, no matter the consequences it may have on others. No matter how you view this inherent right to Breathe, remember it is everyone’s right to Breathe, and not a privilege nor is it a weapon.

Floral and Fauna (Back right)

This mask shows the beauty of our Michigan environment and the life that depends on it. Breathe in all that is Michigan.

Let Us Heal (Back Left)

This mask is made with the healing properties of copper, which has been proven beneficial to healing, and our black ash – which teaches us to work together and helps to heal our hearts.