Tonight, October 14, 2022, at 5:30 PM ET, join @forgeprojectny 2022 Fellow Ilegvak, Peter Williams (Yup’ik) for a presentation on his current work and process of fish-skin sewing. Yup’ik culture embodies reciprocity between the human, plant, animal and spiritual worlds. Ilegvak assumes personal responsibility for this reciprocity by practicing an endangered Alaska Native art form severely disrupted by settler colonialism: skin sewing. Mastery of this craft enabled his ancestors to survive in an unforgiving climate, utilizing the potential of its animals beyond their rich value as a food source. Colonial ecocide and forced assimilation paused the intergenerational transmission of this knowledge for skins of various species we formerly worked with, particularly fish. Ilegvak is now in the process of rediscovering this once life-sustaining craft and adapting it into culture-sustaining art and advocacy. Ilegvak is a culture bearer, artist, designer, filmmaker, and educator based in Sheet'ká (Sitka), Alaska. His hand-sewn works repurpose skin from self-harvested traditional foods, bridging worlds of Indigenous art, fashion, and subsistence. Ilegvak has completed artist residencies at Santa Fe Art Institute and Institute of American Indian Arts, and has guest lectured and/or taught skin sewing at Yale University, Stanford University, UCLA, Portland Art Museum, and Alaska State Museum, among others. This event is free and open to the public. A reception with refreshments will follow the talk. As COVID-19 continues to be active in our communities, proof of COVID-19 vaccination and masks will be required for all who visit Forge Project or Forge Project hosted events. If you are feeling ill or have been recently exposed to either COVID-19 or MPVX, we ask that you stay home. Register online via the #LinkInBio.