Nkisis, Orixás and Ancestors: The Role of Religion, Creativity and Environmental Ethics in the Afro-Atlantic Diaspora

 

Tuesday, September 18

Afro-Brazilian Religion and Environmental Ethics, public lecture by
Makota Valdina Pinto
Weston Hall | 5:00 PM | Presentation Room

Makota Valdina Pinto is an ethicist, environmental justice activist and an elder in the Congo-Angola tradition of the Afro-Brazilian religion, Candomblé.  Ms. Pinto is also a specialist in the ritual pharmacology of the Afro-Indigenous religious traditions of northeastern Brazil.

 

Wednesday, September 19

Ancestors, Art and Black Ritual Diasporas, a public conversation with artists
Junior Pakapym and Daniel Minter
Sawyer Library | 4:15 PM | Mabie Room

Antonio dos Santos Cerqueira Junior (aka Junior Pakapym) is a digital artist and painter from Salvador, Bahia, Brazil whose work draws on Afro-Brazilian religious and cultural iconography.

Daniel Minter is a Maine-based painter, sculptor, illustrator and assemblage artist profoundly influenced by his roots in southern African American culture and decades of exploration of artistic and religious traditions of the African diaspora.

Rachel E. Harding, Sterling Brown ’22 Visiting Professor of Africana Studies, will facilitate a conversation between the artists with slides of their work. Both artists explore Afro-Diasporan religious sensibilities and environmental/racial justice concerns.

 

Thursday, September 20

Block-printing workshop by Daniel Minter and Junior Pakapym
Spencer Studio Art Building, room 124 | 10:00 AM–Noon

 

Healing, Sovereignty and Activism: Perspectives from Candomblé and the Mohawk Nation, a conversation circle with Candomblé and Mohawk elder/activists,
Louise Herne
Makota Valdina Pinto.
Weston Hall | 4:15 | Presentation Room

Louise Wakerakatse Herne, a Clan Mother of the Mohawk Longhouse of Akwesasne.  Ms. Herne, is a respected ceremonial leader, counselor and community organizer responsible for protecting and passing on traditional spiritual and cultural teachings.  She is also an activist whose work combines organizing for environmental and gender justice and advocating for the rights of indigenous people in North America.