CyberPowWow is an

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention * Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band * Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehor ...

-determined online gallery with digital artworks and a library of texts. Conceived in 1996, it was live online from 1997 to 2004 in four main iterations. ''CyberPowWow'' was part webspace and part

chatroom The term chat room, or chatroom (and sometimes group chat; abbreviated as GC), is primarily used to describe any form of synchronous conferencing, occasionally even asynchronous conferencing. The term can thus mean any technology, ranging from ...

, and all artwork displayed on the website was created specifically for ''CyberPowWow''. The website was hosted in Time Warner's ''

The Palace ''The Palace'' is a British drama television series that aired on ITV in 2008. Produced by Company Pictures for the ITV network, it was created by Tom Grieves and follows a fictional British Royal Family in the aftermath of the death of King ...

'', a popular and influential chat room of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

First CyberPowWow exhibition

For the first ''CyberPowWow'' event six

artists and writers were invited to create original site-specific works. The exhibition was launched with a simultaneous, distributed chat event. Participating artists, writers, and the wider public were invited to log on to the ''Palace'' to engage artists and visitors in discussions about the artwork. Skawennati Tricia Fragnito (known professionally as Skawennati), one of the developers of ''CyberPowWow'', and

Jason Edward Lewis Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. H ...

state that, "the event was successful in terms of the Aboriginal art and issues it brought into a public venue," but that, "critical dialogue was often interrupted by 'non-participants' drifting in from other chat rooms."

CyberPowWow 2

''CyberPowWow 2'' signaled the launch of a separate ''Palace'' unique to ''CyberPowWow''. Eight Indigenous artists and writers customized the chat space with imagery, scripts, and a variety of "Indian" avatars. Artists presented their work and answered questions about it from an enthusiastic audience composed largely of people from the Canadian

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic co ...

community. The participants included Ahasiw Maskegon-Iskwew,

Sheryl Kootenhayoo Sheryl is a female given name. The similar name Sherill may be male or female. Notable people named Sheryl, Sheryll or Sheryle include: Business *Sheryl Handler (born 1955), American businesswoman (Thinking Machines, Ab Initio Software) *Shery ...

, who contributed a Quicktime virtual reality piece, and Lori Blondeau, who created and led a virtual round dance.

CPW 2K: CyberPowWow Goes Global

The third incarnation of ''CyberPowWow'' included not only

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

and American artists, but, for the first time,

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal ...

artists as well as non-Indigenous artists. The Indigenous participants were joined by

Mare Burgess A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four y ...

, a white feminist researcher who studies "Indian" warrior women, and

Sheila Urbanoski Sheila (alternatively spelled Shelagh and Sheelagh) is a common feminine given name, derived from the Irish name ''Síle'', which is believed to be a Gaelic form of the Latin name Caelia, the feminine form of the Roman clan name Caelius, meanin ...

, a white artist who grew up in a town bordering a reserve. Skawennati remarked in her curatorial essay: "Now that we have marked our territory, built a Palace and furnished it, it is time to invite in our neighbors: digital artists in the non-Native world. These friends, collaborators, and kindred spirits can talk about the very topic that we are engendering: Aboriginal meets non-Aboriginal."

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.cyberpowwow.net/, name=CyberPowWow official website Native American art Indigenous art in Canada Virtual art museums and galleries Canadian websites Internet properties established in 1997

First CyberPowWow exhibition

CyberPowWow 2

CPW 2K: CyberPowWow Goes Global

References

Further reading

External links