Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism
The 2018 edition of the Sámi festival Márkomeannu elaborated a narrative about the future of both the environment and society by articulating fears of an oncoming apocalypse and hopes for Indigenous Sámi futures through a concept presented to festivalgoers via site-specific scenography, visual narra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Lodz University Press
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Text Matters |
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| Online Access: | https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/textmatters/article/view/15336 |
| _version_ | 1798014665332097024 |
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| author | Erika De Vivo |
| author_facet | Erika De Vivo |
| author_sort | Erika De Vivo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The 2018 edition of the Sámi festival Márkomeannu elaborated a narrative about the future of both the environment and society by articulating fears of an oncoming apocalypse and hopes for Indigenous Sámi futures through a concept presented to festivalgoers via site-specific scenography, visual narratives, and performances. This essay, addressing the festival as a site of artistic activism, reveals the conceptual bases and cultural significance of the festival-plot in relation to Indigenous Sámi cosmologies, the past and the possible future(s) in our time marked by escalating climate change. I argue that Márkomeannu-2018, providing a narrative about the future in which, amidst the Western societies’ dystopic colonial implosion, Indigenous people thrive, can be regarded as an expression of Indigenous Futurism. Counterpointing 19th-century theories predicting the imminent vanishing of Indigenous peoples while positioning the Sámi as modern Indigenous peoples with both a past and a future, this narrative constitutes an act of empowerment. Sámi history and intangible cultural heritage constituted repositories of meaning whereas a folktale constituted a framework for the festival-plot while providing an allegorical tool to read the present. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T15:22:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fc273bfa0f334b629d03c51ae179add1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2083-2931 2084-574X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T15:22:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | Lodz University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Text Matters |
| spelling | doaj.art-fc273bfa0f334b629d03c51ae179add12022-12-22T04:16:21ZengLodz University PressText Matters2083-29312084-574X2022-11-011222724610.18778/2083-2931.12.1415204Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and ActivismErika De Vivo0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0636-3294University of TorinoThe 2018 edition of the Sámi festival Márkomeannu elaborated a narrative about the future of both the environment and society by articulating fears of an oncoming apocalypse and hopes for Indigenous Sámi futures through a concept presented to festivalgoers via site-specific scenography, visual narratives, and performances. This essay, addressing the festival as a site of artistic activism, reveals the conceptual bases and cultural significance of the festival-plot in relation to Indigenous Sámi cosmologies, the past and the possible future(s) in our time marked by escalating climate change. I argue that Márkomeannu-2018, providing a narrative about the future in which, amidst the Western societies’ dystopic colonial implosion, Indigenous people thrive, can be regarded as an expression of Indigenous Futurism. Counterpointing 19th-century theories predicting the imminent vanishing of Indigenous peoples while positioning the Sámi as modern Indigenous peoples with both a past and a future, this narrative constitutes an act of empowerment. Sámi history and intangible cultural heritage constituted repositories of meaning whereas a folktale constituted a framework for the festival-plot while providing an allegorical tool to read the present.https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/textmatters/article/view/15336sámi festivalsartistic activismclimate changeindigenous futurism |
| spellingShingle | Erika De Vivo Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism Text Matters sámi festivals artistic activism climate change indigenous futurism |
| title | Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism |
| title_full | Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism |
| title_fullStr | Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism |
| title_full_unstemmed | Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism |
| title_short | Márkomeannu#2118, the Future is Already Here: Imagining a Sámi Future at the Intersection of Art and Activism |
| title_sort | markomeannu 2118 the future is already here imagining a sami future at the intersection of art and activism |
| topic | sámi festivals artistic activism climate change indigenous futurism |
| url | https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/textmatters/article/view/15336 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT erikadevivo markomeannu2118thefutureisalreadyhereimaginingasamifutureattheintersectionofartandactivism |