A multimedia artist, Jackson 2bears, has created “Ne:Kahwistará:ken Kanónhsa’kówa í:se Onkwehonwe,” a vivid virtual retelling of the Haudenosaunee creation story. The project, which was inspired by the traditional Haudenosaunee structure, the longhouse, was a collaborative effort designed to keep indigenous teachings and stories alive, central to which was the importance of communal experiences. The installation was constructed with the support of the Co-Creation Studio at MIT’s Open Documentary Lab.
The immersive experience involved a virtual longhouse that brought stories to life with drumming, dancing, knowledge-sharing, and storytelling, and offered a shared space for community members to gather. Reflecting the Haudenosaunee worldview, the longhouse represented not the materials from which it was created, but the people and their cultural practices, creating a sacred space.
Collaboration was a crucial component of the project, said Kat Cizek, the artistic director and co-founder of the Co-Creation Studio. She described co-creation as a dance challenging the idea of the singular author, a perspective that 2bears shares. The practice abandons a set agenda, prompting people to enter a creative space with curiosity and questions about what they might create collectively.
While 2bears initially thought his time at MIT would support the technical aspects of his work, he discovered that it was a rich environment for exploring larger philosophical questions related to technology, indigenous knowledge, and artificial intelligence. 2bears also participated in the MIT Co-Creation Studio Indigenous Immersive Incubator, where he shared his project as a work in progress.
In a surprising twist, halfway through the project, the physical longhouse unexpectedly burned down after the team had created 3D scans of the structure. This loss spurred the team to transition to the project’s current form, using video mapping with multiple projectors and 14-channel surround sound to project 8-foot images onto a 34-foot diameter canvas screen. The resulting creation premiered at the 2RO MEDIA Festival and was enthusiastically received by the Six Nations community.
Looking toward the future, 2bears hopes to make the installation more interactive and to create multiple versions of the creation story. His aspiration is to create a living installation, a project forged in community and transformed by the shared experiences of those who engage with it.
