2024
Acrylic & ledger paper on canvas
30” x 40”
 
Wager Reel explores the connection between gambling, chance, and Indigenous sovereignty. The backdrop of ledger paper historically used to record treaties and financial exchanges sets the stage for a deeper conversation about risk, survival, and autonomy.
 
Slot machines, driven entirely by chance, parallel the instability imposed on Indigenous peoples through forced removal and the ongoing struggle to navigate Western society. At times, our culture is commodified and celebrated by outsiders; other times, it is attacked and erased. Against this unpredictability, expressed are these cultural symbols: the feather represents sovereignty, the cradleboard signifies future generations, bitterroot speaks to subsistence, and arrows reflect self-determination and resistance.
 
By layering these elements within the structure of a slot machine, Wager Reel expresses the stakes of gambling, not just in money lost, but in identity, stability, and the fight to reclaim control over our future.
 
Pick up is availble for Tacoma or Seattle.