On Michigan State University's campus, dozens of red dresses have been hung along West Circle Drive and near the MSU Museum and the Beal Botanical Garden.
They’re part of an outdoor art exhibition created to call attention to the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. It’s called The REDress Project.
WKAR's Sophia Saliby spoke with Métis artist Jaime Black-Morsette who's behind the piece.
Interview Highlights
On the meaning behind their piece
They're empty red dresses. So, it's like that emptiness and that absence really brings home the fact that so many women are facing high rates of violence. But I think it's really important also is like, and every time I do the work, what I feel when standing beside the dresses is also a presence. So, it's not only the absence, but it's also the presence of the spiritual power of these women that kind of comes with, you know, comes with this work and sits with those dresses as well.
On the significance of the dresses being red
Red is the color of our lifeblood. It's what animates us. It's what gives us life, right? And so, it's really such a powerful color. And you know, different communities and cultures have different ways of understanding the color red. It's really amazing during this work because I've learned different ways that people understand that color. And so, I've been told by a Dakota artist friend of mine that red is the only color the spirits can see. This last summer, I was able to speak with some elders from South America, and they said red is the color of life in their culture.
On using dresses to address a painful issue
It's creating that connection between that spiritual energy and that presence of those women and the clothing is, it's almost like a ceremony to put up those dresses, you know ... And I think the beauty of those dresses really brings home that like power of, you know, us women, like, I mean, you put those dresses outside, and you can't help but notice them. And you can't help but feel like, you know, like someone is standing there. So, I think there's, you know, those dresses help kind of convey that power, and that presence and energy.
Interview Transcript
Sophia Saliby: On Michigan State University's campus, dozens of red dresses have been hung along West Circle Drive and near the MSU Museum and the Beal Botanical Garden.
They’re part of an outdoor art exhibition created to call attention to the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. It’s called The REDress Project.
Métis artist Jaime Black-Morsette is behind the piece, and they’re here with me now. Thank you for joining me.
Black-Morsette: Thanks for having me.
Saliby: For those who aren't able to see this piece, can you talk about what The REDress Project looks like?
Black-Morsette: So basically, it's an art installation, obviously, that points to violence against Indigenous women. And what it looks like when you're walking in public spaces, really, it's dozens and dozens of red dresses suspended in different spaces, and they're empty red dresses. So, it's like that emptiness and that absence really brings home the fact that so many women are facing high rates of violence.
But I think it's really important also is like, and every time I do the work, what I feel when standing beside the dresses is also a presence. So, it's not only the absence, but it's also the presence of the spiritual power of these women that kind of comes with, you know, comes with this work and sits with those dresses as well.
Saliby: This is a piece you've worked on for more than a decade and brought to communities both in the U.S. and Canada, where you're from.
Can you talk about the creation of the project, and also its name because it's The REDress Project, but it's also stylized to look like "redress?"
Black-Morsette: Well, I'm also a writer, so I like to play with words. So, you know, just when I thought of doing this work, that was one of the things that I thought of titling it. So redress for those that don't know means to put right a wrong. So, it's really about bringing justice. So, I just love that play on on the word of the red dress and redress.
And I began this work in probably around 2009 and started out working with the University of Winnipeg here with the Women and Gender Studies Department. And they were really pivotal in supporting me in doing this work. They put out a call for donations of red dresses, and we got over 100 red dresses in a very short time. And we put those dresses all over campus very similar to what's happening in your community right now.
Red is the color of our lifeblood. It's what animates us. It's what gives us life, right? And so, it's really such a powerful color. And you know, different communities and cultures have different ways of understanding the color red.
And ever since then, I have been doing this work in different campus communities, a lot of places, a lot of universities, colleges, you know, friendship centers, community centers, all over Canada and the U.S.
Saliby: Can you talk about the significance of the dresses being red?
Black-Morsette: For myself and my sort of personal spiritual practice, I've always been drawn to red, and I never really knew why. I wasn't really raised with that sort of ceremonial, traditional sort of culture, but I practice it kind of on my own. And so, I always was using red thread or, and I still do it, you know, red cloth ties, all of that.
And, to me, that red, that color red is the color of our lifeblood. It's what animates us. It's what gives us life, right? And so, it's really such a powerful color. And you know, different communities and cultures have different ways of understanding the color red. It's really amazing during this work because I've learned different ways that people understand that color.
And so, I've been told by a Dakota artist friend of mine that red is the only color the spirits can see. This last summer, I was able to speak with some elders from South America, and they said red is the color of life in their culture. So it's a really, if nothing else, any specific meaning, it's an extremely powerful color, and ceremonially it's used all over the world.
Saliby: You talked about starting this piece with donations. So I want to ask, are the dresses on MSU's campus right now, are they from the Mid Michigan community? Or did they travel around with the project or maybe some sort of combo?
Black-Morsette: I've sent some dresses to you guys, so they've been to other places before they got to you. And so, there's dresses that have been part of the project for a while and have been traveling around the states.
And then there's also dresses that have been donated, and so I just kind of opened it up that if the community itself wanted to give donations that was a possibility as well, so it's it's a combination of both.
Saliby: Can you talk about kind of putting together, you know, these beautiful things, dresses, with something painful, people who are hurt, people who are missing, people who are killed. How are you kind of bringing those two kind of somewhat opposite concepts together?
Black-Morsette: I think that clothing really carries a spirit. I don't necessarily think of them as opposite. I really think it's like a connection. It's creating that connection between that spiritual energy and that presence of those women and the clothing is, it's almost like a ceremony to put up those dresses, you know. I don't think of it as two kind of separate things.
And I think the beauty of those dresses really brings home that like power of, you know, us women, like, I mean, you put those dresses outside, and you can't help but notice them. And you can't help but feel like, you know, like someone is standing there. So, I think there's, you know, those dresses help kind of convey that power, and that presence and energy.
I also feel like, you know, putting those dresses outside is really powerful as well, because the land and the wind will animate the dresses, and they almost will dance.
And I also feel like, you know, putting those dresses outside is really powerful as well, because the land and the wind will animate the dresses, and they almost will dance. So, I think there's just something really special and powerful about that as well.
Saliby: And what do you hope people take away from seeing this piece?
Black-Morsette: Well, I think that like this work, like really what I kind of set out to do was to raise awareness. And that was a long time ago, I think, you know, the political landscape and sort of, like public understanding of Indigenous issues has changed very dramatically here in Canada over the time since I started doing this work. So, there is a lot of awareness here in Canada now.
I feel like, you know, socially and politically in the U.S., it's a very different kind of climate around indigenous issues where, you know, there isn't as much public awareness of the history of colonization and the ongoing effects of colonization on Indigenous communities.
And so, you know, that was the goal of the project. So, I was starting to feel like, oh, you know, maybe, you know, it's time to move on. But just around that same time, I started being asked to show the dresses in the U.S. So, I think that, you know, what really has happened is that opening that conversation, and I feel like, you know, socially and politically in the U.S., it's a very different kind of climate around indigenous issues where, you know, there isn't as much public awareness of the history of colonization and the ongoing effects of colonization on Indigenous communities.
And so, I feel like this awareness raising that these dresses can create, you know, it's really like a doorway or opening for education.
Saliby: Jamie Black-Morsette is the artist behind The REDress Project. It's on display now at MSU until March 17th. Thank you for joining me.
Black-Morsette: Thank you.
This conversation has been edited at clarity and conciseness.
The MSU Museum is a financial supporter of WKAR.
