This exhibition brings together Indigenous artists from across Turtle Island who regularly attend the weekly “Rock Your Beads Night” art-making sessions on Zoom.

Each artist’s practice is unique, shaped by personal experience and creative vision. Yet all emerge from a shared history of Indigenous resilience and refusal. As settler colonial violence continues to displace Indigenous peoples from their lands—which are the foundation of culture—the act of creating remains vital. To make art, to learn art ways, and to pass on artistic knowledge are all essential to the survival of Indigenous cultures.

Creating and sharing art is also deeply individual. For many of the artists, the act of making is sustaining. It is how they nourish their spirit and maintain balance in the face of ongoing societal and personal challenges.

The works gathered here remind us that resistance is sometimes quiet, steady, and deeply rooted. Sometimes, it looks like revitalizing an art practice in one’s community or family. Sometimes, it looks like creating art for oneself or gifting it to a friend. Always, it is an act of survival.