Chords to Other Chords (Relative)
Marie Watt
Aug 24–Oct 15
Chords to Other Chords (Relative) (2023), a sculpture fabricated in neon, will blaze like a sunrise in the landscape. This project is first and foremost an affirmation of the land and the Indigenous people who are ephemeral monuments to this territory. It is a way of seeing ourselves in public places that have ties to our ancestors and to future generations.
As Joy Harjo writes, “We are chords/to other chords to other chords, if we’re lucky, to melody.” For Watt her monumental neon embodies “our relatedness, reverberating and expanding beyond the individual to empower and embrace the many. This work builds upon Seneca oral history traditions and the history of call and response. Conversations are intended to call back in time to our ancestors and also forward to future generations, based on the belief that our present moment is inextricably tethered to the communities of past and future.”
The Haudenosaunee call the land now known as North America “Turtle Island.” It is a name derived from the Haudenosaunee creation story that speaks of Skywoman’s descent from Skyworld and the aid of the animals in her safe landing. In recognition of the multitude of Indigenous origin stories and place names, this sign proclaims not just “Turtle Island'' but “Turtle Island And.”
According to Watt, "Turtle Island is the land that we’re on, it’s the water that runs underneath our feet, it’s the air we breathe, the molecules that make up our bodies… so the phrase “chords to other chords” makes me think of this deep connectedness that travels through time.” As a billboard-sized work, Chords to Other Chords (Relative) breaks many barriers to experiencing art. It is not siloed in an inaccessible space, but exists in a space for all to see and experience, regardless of factors such as demographics, field of work and relationship to art and the environment. The audience is broad and the interactions are broader.