Greetings Mosaics on Main Community,

We are thrilled to have been able to display our latest work, artist Wendy Black-Nasta’s Honor Wall for the First Nations of Connecticut, at 428 Main Street since last month. This moving and ambitious work involved a tremendous collaboration among community volunteers, artists, and scholars. The process included many students, including those from my Engaged Learning course at Wesleyan on Community Based Public Art, 7th graders from Washington Middle School in Meriden, and students from every 4th grade class in the Middletown Public Schools. All these folks contributed to helping Wendy and her team bring this remarkable piece to fruition.

To culminate this exhibit, we invite you to join us on September 22 at 2:00 at the exhibition site for a celebration. All are welcome, and there will be remarks at 2:15 as we all gather to enjoy this piece one more time before the exhibition ends later that evening. If you are unable to see this piece in person, here is a short video walk-through to give you some idea.   

Following, at 3:15, at deKoven House, 27 Washington Street, Artists for World Peace will host a special event with multiple guests:

•    The event will begin with a blessing from Gary O’Neil, Wangunk elder, ceramic artist, contributor to the Honor Wall, and teacher of the aforementioned Meriden 7th graders. 

•    Lead artist Black-Nasta, designer and lead artist of the First Nations of Connecticut’s Honor Wall, will lead a presentation illuminating the making of the Wall and a detailed description of its symbolism and stories. 

•    A video will spotlight the many artists and volunteers and highlight the lead assistant artist, April Chateauneuf.

•    Katherine Brunson, Assistant Professor of Archaeology at Wesleyan, will discuss the process of 3-D scanning and printing of the original artifacts that Wendy chose to use (after a consultation with Archaeology Collections Manager Wendi Field Murray). 

•    Brenda Geer, Vice Chairwoman of the Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation, will give a presentation on her tribe’s past and present. 

Seating for the 3:15 deKoven House presentation is limited; to reserve your seat for this part, please email wendy@artistsforworldpeace.org

Best, 

Kate Ten Eyck 

Artistic Director, Mosaics on Main

Funding for this project has been provided by the Middletown Commission on the Arts and by the Connecticut State Legislature through funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, administered by the Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of the Arts. Additional funding for the Honor Wall was provided by CT Humanities. 

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