By Remy

This is some brief insight into the process of a four-color print which was rather ambitious considering it was my very first attempt at screenprinting.

The Navajo Reservation was once surrounded by seven coal-fired plants but through collective and familial efforts from Black Mesa, that number of plants is now down to five.

This screenprint process attempted to keep messaging true to our local grassroots movement on Black Mesa, free of typical watered-down non-profit language and also culturally considerate to avoid using death or its imagery. These obstacles in telling our struggle as Diné from that region are a direct reflection of our lived experiences battling colonialism and environmental destruction.

More than 30% of Diné on our reservation do not have electricity, running water, or most other First World comforts. The Black Mesa community is born into a sacrifice zone forced to desecrate and destroy our land, water and air to provide electricity and progress to Arizona, Nevada, and southern California. Consider the western white American capitalist “culture” that has proliferated on stolen Indigenous land from Las Vegas to Hollywood. It is us – the Diné of Black Mesa that has provided all of that for the last 50 years.

Indigenous people have historically defended Mother Earth and the properties inside of her so representing that protection in the form of protest was important to include on this screenprint. Creating a font was also another first within this piece. It was very cathartic to deconstruct the English language and rightfully associate it with its visual extractive violence toward Mother Earth. It is this colonial language that has been used in contracts and treaties with the colonizer to steal our land from us and destroy it and us.

Incorporating the official symbol for mountaintop removal within the letter “A” and the hand holding the pick within the letter “S” was aesthetically appropriate. The rug design border was inspired by my childhood watching shímasaní (grandmother) weave beautiful intricate rugs on her giant loom and it was the final touch of this piece. These concepts were passed onto me from my family and culture and used as the foundation for developing this print. This was my first attempt to visually bring our personal story from Black Mesa to life. 

Ahéheé