NinaJohnson

Nina Johnson is pleased to present BELIEVE THE RUMORS, a solo exhibition of new and existing works on paper by multi-disciplinary Tlingít artist Rachel Martin. Opening March 14th in the Upstairs Gallery, the exhibition is comprised of various works that individually serve as short stories, coming together to create a larger celebration of Indigenous resistance, intersectional feminism, and the healing strength of both matriarchal and femme energy. 

With BELIEVE THE RUMORS the artist brings together a culmination of references from her past three years of work across ideas of vulnerability, strength, tenderness, fierceness, the femme, and Indigenous sovereignty. Martin is highly aware of the intersections of her own identity—in this exhibition she seeks to honor the work of ancestors through her own voice, and interpret the art forms of the Northwest Coast through her intersectional perspectives as a woman, as someone of indigenous heritage, and as someone with deep ties to the West Coast, and currently living in New York City. 

With BELIEVE THE RUMORS (2023), the artist tells the story of “Whisper Networks,” through which women pass rumors and information to protect themselves from men in the community who cause harm. This form of communication is often reduced to the word ‘gossip’ by patriarchal forces, but is very much a safeguard that has served women throughout history. This work is drawn with red and white colored pencil: red being a color associated with a call to action, with the active white lines signifying the electricity and energy that accompany perseverance.

“I love playing with the concepts of formline design in humorous and feminine ways that still hold strength and resilience in the same way that traditional work does,” said Rachel Martin. “I love telling stories through my voice that resonate with a wide audience that may or may not be familiar with formline, but also with  an Indigenous audience who can see themselves and their stories in my work. I want to encourage a younger generation of Indigenous artists to see themselves as a contributing part of our living art forms.”