Ezhi-gikininjiininang gigashiminaan (The Way a Mother Hugs Us)
What started off as a public art commission to promote breastfeeding quickly became a love letter to my nimaamaa (mother) who has shared stories of her time...
Sam Zimmerman
Mookise Meme (Dawn Pileated Woodpecker)
Recently, I was driving back from Gichi-onigamiing (Grand Portage) when I saw a beautiful flash of miskwaa (red) launch from the trees and dive across Highway 61. At...
Maang at Dawn (Loon)
It is such a magical mandioo (spirit), the maang (loon); a doodem (clan) animal of the Ojibwe representing spiritual leadership with its haunting song traveling across the waters of Gitchi Gami (Lake Superior)....
Agwadaashi (Sunfish)
As a gwiiwizens (boy), I use to take my newest Hardy Boy book, bait pail and fishing pole and sit by the river and spend all gabe-zhebaa (morning) fishing....
Makwa and Aamoo (Bear and the Bee)
With Father’s Day approaching soon, I wanted to share a piece that I completed to honor the men (the fathers, uncles, brothers and grandfathers) who...
Niimi (She Dances to the Sky)
Niimi (She Dances) is a figure who has her own journey home to Gitchi Onigaming (Grand Portage) captured in a number of my paintings. Her shawl incorporates the different...
Gaagaagi Gizhaazh (Raven Watch Over)
A couple months ago, a gaagaagi (raven) came and sat on my deck railing watching me while I had my morning Makade-mashkikiwaaboo (coffee). The sun caught its feathers and...
Nimishoomis Moos (Grandfather’s Moose)
My Nimishoomis (Grandfather) was a wonderful storyteller. I spent a summer with him before high school and he would tell me different stories about growing up in Gitchi...