Graduate Studies

Interdisciplinary Master's in Art, Media and Design (MA, MDes and MFA)

Nicole Neidhardt

Beam Me Up, Asdzą́ą́ Anilí

Beam Me Up, Asdzą́ą́ Anilí was a work I created during my MFA for the LAND BACK exhibition at Open Space Art Gallery in September 2020.

“Indigenous Futurisms and Land Back weave together in my installation, Beam Me Up, Asdzą́ą́ Anilí. The installation is a Diné Transporter Pad, stemming from my love of Star Trek, that holds a portrait of one of my ancestors Asdzą́ą́ Anilí. They were alive during the Diné (Navajo) Long Walk in the 1860’s and escaped from the U.S. Army to return to our ancestral homelands. As a leader, protector, medicine person, and matriarch from my community, Asdzą́ą́ Anilí embodies the strength, power, and deep connection to Land that is innate to Land Protectors. Asdzą́ą́ Anilí is a Time Travelling Matriarch and Land Protector who exists in a temporal realm slightly different than our own, coming to support Indigenous Land Defenders in moments of need. This transporter pad acts as a portal, to transport you into a pocket of Diné time and space where you can truly experience the Glittering World we live in.The installation is made of mirror mylar, a glittering, reflective material that bounces light and dances to the slightest of air currents. The walls of the transporter are hand-cut stencils that feature Asdzą́ą́ Anilí’s portrait, a Chief blanket design to acknowledge their role as a matriarch in our community, and the words Dadílzinii Jidísin (Respect the Sacred) overlayed with a corn stalk design. The light and shadows activate the transporter as much as the earth from my home community, Round Rock, Arizona. In my interactions with Time Travelling Matriarchs, Land Protectors, and Diné stories, I have learned the Land is the original time machine. It holds our stories in the rocks, soil, and waters. This is why Land Back is so deeply important. The Land holds our Ancestors, our kinship relations, our histories, our stories, our bodies, our trauma, our dreams, and our futures. Beam Me Up, Asdzą́ą́ Anilí carves out some time, some space, for us to dream of these Indigenous Futures so they can be put into motion.”