About my gas mask paintings… via The Official Blog of Bunky Echo-Hawk

Nawa All…

Throughout my career, I’ve often been asked about my use of gas masks in my art. Here is my original artist statement about the series that started it all:

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GAS MASK AS MEDICINE

This series came about after learning about toxic, radioactive waste sites popping up in Indian Country.  I felt compelled to share the knowledge of their existences, and to tie in the relationship of biological warfare of past years with the construction of these sites, which typically target Indian reservations.  I wanted the message to be strong, undeniable, and memorable.  I wanted people to think about it, to ask questions.  So, I used the image, and idea, of the gas mask.

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The gas mask, worn by Native Americans, signifies several other subjects. It is a reference to the Native American demographic collapse, or Holocaust, due largely to primitive colonial means of biological and germ warfare. In 1539, Hernando De Soto invaded Florida. He brought 200 horses, 600 soldiers, and 300 pigs. The swine carried and spread anthrax, brucellosis, leptospirosis, trichinosis, and tuberculosis. Forests were contaminated, which in turn contaminated native animals, and consequently killed at least 200,000 Native Americans. In 1763, Lord Jeffrey Amherst ordered smallpox-infested blankets to be dispersed among the Ottawa as gifts, so that “we may extirpate this execrable race.” This has long been the government’s attitude toward Native Americans.

In recent years, the U.S. government has been using the Native American population as guinea pigs. In Washington State, for example, the Hanford nuclear waste, weapons and research facility performed a secret experiment in 1945. Hanford released nuclear waste into the environment over the years onto nearby Yakama and Spokane reservations. The total number of nuclear waste released is estimated to be ten times greater than the quantity released from the Chernobyl meltdown in 1986.

The images in this series are bold and contemporary. The gas masks are juxtaposed with traditional clothing, which exemplifies the dualities of contemporary Native American life, the perseverance of culture and religion through hardships, and the stark reality that we have survived.