Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project

The Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project is part of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board's Bde Maka Ska–Harriet Master Plan.[2] In parallel with (but separate from) the restoring the name of Lake Calhoun to its Dakota name, Bde Maka Ska, a public art project was initiated to commemorate Ḣeyata Oṭuŋwe, a 19th-century Dakota agricultural community on the southeast bank of Bde Maka Ska, and its founder, Dakota leader Maḣpiya Wic̣aṡṭa (Cloud Man).[1]

Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project
ArtistAngela Two Stars, Sandy Spieler, Mona Smith[1]
Year2018
TypePublic Art
SubjectHistory of Minneapolis, Minnesota
LocationMinneapolis, Minnesota
Coordinates44°56′09″N 93°18′21″W / 44.935804°N 93.305785°W / 44.935804; -93.305785
Websitehttps://bdemakaska.net

Project elements

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The project's artwork pieces, collectively "Zaníyaŋ Yutḣókc̣a" (Brave Change), include a public gathering place with a circular stone seating area, ornamental panels forming a railing, and a pedestrian path with stampings depicting and naming various local crops (notably corn and wild rice) and wildlife.[3]

The site incorporates an existing memorial plaque, reading, "To perpetuate the memory of the Sioux or Dakota Indians who occupied this region for more than two centuries prior to the treaties of 1851. This tablet is erected by the Minnesota Society of Daughters of the American Colonists, 1930."

A project website includes material on the history of the site and of the project itself. Interpretive signage, a collaboration between the park board and descendants, (pending funding) is planned for the project's next step.[4]

Ornamental Panels
Dakota English
OHIŊNINAŊ DED WAṬI KTE I will always live here.
ḢEYATA OṬUŊWE The village away from the river (Cloud Man's Village; Eatonville)
WAC̣IŊṬANKA perseverance
WÓOḢAŊWAṠTE generosity
WÓWADITAKE courage
DAḲOTA WIC̣OḢAŊ Dakota way of life
Path Stampings
Dakota English
TAŊYAŊ YAHI welcome (at south entrance)
HOĠAŊ fish
WAḢCÁ flower, purple cone
WAŊBDÍ eagle
P̣EŻÍḢOTA sage
TÁHCA deer
PSÍŊ wild rice
MAṬÓ bear
C̣AŊPÁ chokecherry
ṬAṬÁŊKA buffalo
ḲÉYA turtle
TAŊYAŊ YAHI welcome (at north entrance)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project". City of Minneapolis.
  2. ^ "Master Plans". Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.
  3. ^ "Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project Study Report" (PDF). Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.
  4. ^ "Bde Maka Ska Public Art Project". City of Minneapolis, MN. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
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44°56′09″N 93°18′21″W / 44.935804°N 93.305785°W / 44.935804; -93.305785