Honoring Modern Unidentified .5, Gina Adams

Adams created the series “Honoring Modern Unidentified” after seeing 19th-century archival photographs of Native Americans who were simply labeled “Unidentified.” She wanted to honor these anonymous people and countless others who have been systemically dispossessed of their personal histories, senses of place, and cultural practices, by rooting them to a time and place where they would be remembered.

Adams researched the symbols and iconography on clothing and accessories in the photographs. She then spent several months studying objects at the Spencer Museum of Art to identify beadwork that referenced similar motifs. The designs on her sculptures are inspired by works in the Spencer’s collections. In this way, the Museum’s holdings allowed a contemporary artist to connect the unidentified individuals of the past with a present that celebrates, appreciates, and honors them.

The ceramic forms were made from molds Adams created using regulation basketballs, an object she perceives as a potent symbol of forced assimilation campaigns. She then decorated the surface of the basketball with encaustic, a method that entails mixing pigment into melted wax, brushing the tinted wax onto the clay, and lightly carving the detailed designs into the semi-soft wax surface. Based on her own experiences and conversations with others, Adams notes that many Native Americans believe athletics are one of the only ways indigenous youth can be accepted in non-Native cultural settings.