TAA’s _Truckee Turntable_ Newsletter, October 2023

OCTOBER 2023

Special Issue: The Truckee Arts Alliance Introduces
The First Truckee Cultural District Program Manager

WELCOME, KELLIE CULTER

{Pictured here: Kellie Cutler, the first Program Manager for the Truckee Cultural District. Kellie is a pink-skinned woman with blonde wavy hair, wearing a black suit jacket and silk scarf with silver embroidered detailing.}

Pictured above: Kellie Cutler, the first Program Manager for the Truckee Cultural District. Kellie is a pink-skinned woman with blonde wavy hair, wearing a black suit jacket and silk scarf with silver embroidered detailing. Photo courtesy of Rob Retting Photography.

~ A Note From Kellie ~

A year ago, I was returning to my beloved Jackson Hole, Wyoming, training to summit the Grand Teton—a bucket list goal 20+ years standing. A Bell’s Palsy attack on Day 1 prevented me from reaching that goal. I flew back to Truckee the next day. Now twelve months later, and roughly 85% recovered, I have started a new professional journey leading me to this dream job.

Looking back, I had a different type of mountain to climb, and my personal well-being needed to be a priority above all else. I took eight months off from a chronically stressful workload to rediscover the things that gave me the most familiarity and joy. Engaging the creative side of my brain was top of the list; signing up for drawing classes led me back to that fine art degree path buried within.

Recovering facial paralysis from nerve damage has proven physically challenging, and I am grateful for the fierce support I continue to receive from my key inner core group of friends and family. Returning to the arts sector in a community I have lived in with my family for 18 years was intentional and feels incredibly gratifying.

My name is Kellie Cutler, and I am proud to have been selected to be the first Truckee Cultural District Program Director. Nonprofit community-based work is where my career has been focused for the past 23 years in the Reno-Tahoe region.

I am beyond excited to be working with the Nevada County Arts Council and Truckee Arts Alliance on strategic goals that qualify Truckee as a Cultural District designation. I see great opportunities to take Truckee Cultural District to the next level. Being a part of that impact brings me great satisfaction, and I am looking forward to this next adventure.

Join us in welcoming Kellie Cutler as the Cultural District’s Program Manager at TAA’s next Third Thursday, October 19, when we meetup at Gallery 5830’!
Follow TAA on Instagram and Facebook for updates.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ DAY
OCTOBER 9

{Pictured here: The culminating panel at “The Story and Art of Stewart Indian School,” a traveling exhibit from the Stewart Indian School Cultural Center & Museum, picturing the words, “We Are Still Here."}

Pictured above: The culminating panel at “The Story and Art of Stewart Indian School,” a traveling exhibit from the Stewart Indian School Cultural Center & Museum, picturing the words, “We Are Still Here” appear amidst a rainbow collage of color and accomplished alumni. Photo courtesy of the SISCCM.

~ Art & Perspectives from History ~

Within the last twenty-four hours, visual artists have posted images of first snow drifts in the Truckee-Tahoe region. A live camera at Palisades Tahoe with 80,000 views as of this writing shows snow flurries piling up in the Sierra Nevada. Locals anticipate another heavy winter. What will become of this season, and what did it look like long ago?

Autumn harvests take many shapes. In the Truckee Cultural District, and in observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day on October 9, we plant seeds of intention for year-round education of Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California and their-our changing ecological, and therefore cultural, landscapes.

On display now at the Truckee Recreation Center is the exhibit, “The Story and the Art of Stewart Indian School,” a thoughtful representation honoring the lives and stories of Native American students who were forced into the US governments assimilation policy from 1890–1980. The exhibit, sponsored by the Stewart Indian School Cultural Center and Museum and co-sponsored by TPAC, presents a unique opportunity to learn the history of a neighboring community, depicted through photography and art.

{Pictured here: “Stereo Wire Basket” by Loretta Burden of the Toi-Ticutta Fallon Paiute ancestry. Substantial stereo wires of earthen colors take the shape of a conical basket. Photo courtesy of SISCCM.}

Pictured above: “Stereo Wire Basket” by Loretta Burden of the Toi-Ticutta Fallon Paiute ancestry. Substantial stereo wires of earthen colors take the shape of a conical basket. A rose blossom, also made of stereo wire, adorns the basket as does a beaded pendant in black and turquoise. Photo courtesy of the SISCCM.

The Artworks spanning decades by artists of Numu (Northern Paiute), Nuwu (Southern Paiute), Wašiw (Washoe), and Newe (Western Shoshone) ancestry, whose tribes accounted for the first class of Stewart School students in 1890. Large panel photographs of Native students and classroom artifacts accompany recent works, illuminating a long history of trauma and resilience.

Jo Ann Nevers, who was interviewed by UNR about the Stewart Indian School, was a member of the Washoe tribe and author of the book, Wa She Shu: A Washo Tribal History. She writes about the school in her ”Pine Nut Lands” chapter:

“Parents, as well as children, disliked the school. They objected to it because it took their children away from their families and their familiar environments. Children were punished for speaking their native languages, and many of them lost touch with their own culture and families.

“But the parents’ most serious objection was that, often, children taken to the school never came home. Many of them caught strange diseases, like smallpox, cholera, and influenza, brought by the white man. The parents did not want to send their children away, or have them taken away, to die.”

${Pictured here: Jo Ann Nevers' book, _Wa She Shu: A Washo Tribal History_ (1976). This First Edition comes in a yellow clothbound cover that features a border pattern of sienna-colored diamonds.}$

Pictured above: Jo Ann Nevers' book, Wa She Shu: A Washo Tribal History (1976). This First Edition comes in a yellow clothbound cover that features a border pattern of sienna-colored diamonds. At center appear is a conical basket and a set of pine nut grinding tools as designed and utilized by the Washoe for thousands of years.

Over the years, Nevers continues in her book, conditions at the school improved, later graduating a number of students into a variety of careers and vocations.

One exhibit panel seems to affirm this: “attending the Stewart Indian School continues to affect alumni in many different ways, some positive and some negative.” Ultimately, the government’s “assimilation [project had] failed, and Indigenous cultures survived.”

See the “The Story and the Art of Stewart Indian School” by October 20, after which time it travels to the University of Nevada, Reno. Located now at the Truckee-Donner Recreation & Park District Community Recreation Center, 10981 Truckee Way, on view during operating hours.

Before you turn back the clocks for Daylight Savings (on November 5), turn the page to 2024, saving space for these Indigenous events:

Washoe Cultural Talks, which take place at Palisades Tahoe from June through August. Washoe members present what Nevers described in her book as “both beautiful and useful objects,” such as fish traps, obsidian tools, stone playing dice, and woven ducks used for hunting.
The Waší∙šiw ɁitdéɁ Festival, held every mid-to-late July. Dancers, artists, and vendors representing many California Tribes gather, bringing various foods, dance styles, arts and crafts to Meeks Bay. (This year, TAA picked up a copy of a Washoe Tribe Field Guide named, WaɁ de t'i∙ɁmiɁ, or It Grows Here.) Learn more about Waší∙šiw ɁitdéɁ, or “the homelands of the Washoe People,” on the official website of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California.
For Indigenous Day events held in Northern California, follow TAA on Instagram and Facebook for updates on events, with many occurring this Saturday, October 7.

AUTUMNAL ACTIVITIES

{Pictured here: Dr. Sue Fawn Chung, who wears a jade necklace and earrings, will share “A Brief Look at the Chinese in Truckee” at Donner Memorial State Park on Saturday, October 14.}

Pictured above: Dr. Sue Fawn Chung, who wears a jade necklace and earrings, will share “A Brief Look at the Chinese in Truckee” at Donner Memorial State Park on Saturday, October 14. Also pictured: an archival photograph of a Chinese laborer walking from a mountain tunnel. Event flyer courtesy of the California State Parks website.

~ Select Events in Reno, Tahoe, and the TCD ~

Tahoe Truckee School of Music hosts its new “Community Concerts” series, on Oct. 4 with the award-winning Steel Sparrows. Follow TTSM for the Oct. 18 lineup. Wednesdays, 6:00–8:00pm. Community Arts Center outdoor amphitheater, 10046 Church Street. Free.
Opening Reception for artist Leilani Schweitzer and her kinetic wall sculptures as part of a large-scale art show. First Friday, Oct. 6, 5:00–7:00pm; Piper J Gallery, 10250 Donner Pass Road.
Exhibition Premiere of "Speechless," by Cannupa Hanska Luger, whose work views themes of communication, human agency, colonial history, language, and implements of control through an Indigenous lens. First Friday, Oct. 6, 7:00pm Artist Talk, 8:00pm Premiere; Nevada Museum of Art, 160 W Liberty Street, Reno. Visit the exhibition webpage to register for $15 tickets.
Truckee serves up its 20th Annual Wine Walk & Shop, this year in support of the Friends of the Truckee Library. Saturday, Oct. 7, 12:00–4:00pm. Historic Downtown Truckee Vistor Center, 10065 Donner Pass Road. Visit the website to purchase tickets ($25–$65).

Pictured here: A melting(?) jack-o-lantern, from whose mouth drains a soylent-green-like mass. From its open top, an aspen sprouts; black bats circle the spooky scene.
Event flyer courtesy of the Aspen Collective.

Bring your holiday shopping list to the Made in Tahoe Festival, where you’ll find gifts made with love. Local artists, organizations, and vendors make it a day to connect with creative entrepreneurism of the area. Saturday, Oct. 7, and Sunday, Oct. 8, 11:00am–5:00pm. The Village at Palisades Tahoe, 1960 Olympic Valley Road, Olympic Valley. Free.
Hear about Truckee’s early Chinese residents from Dr. Sue Fawn Chung, author of In Pursuit of Gold: Chinese American Miners and Merchants in the American West. Listen to her speak about the incentives that brought thousands of Chinese immigrants to the U.S. in the 19th and 20th centuries on PBS ahead of the lecture. Saturday, Oct. 14, 5:30pm; Donner Memorial State Park Visitor Center, 12593 Donner Pass Road. Free.
Opening Tuesday, Oct. 17, at the Truckee Tahoe Airport Gallery: Michael Ambrose’s photography, Rossitza Todorova paintings, and Molly O’Mara paintings. 10356 Truckee Airport Road, on view during operating hours.
The Aspen Collective—a teen-led collective bringing alternative arts and music to Truckee—hosts a band showcase, carnival games and spooky-fun activities. Friday, Oct. 20. Doors at 6:30pm, music at 7:00pm. Truckee Veterans Hall, 10416 High Street. Tickets $13 at the door, $10 with costume.
TDPRD hosts its annual Halloween Parade! Wear your costumes and join the fun at the Community Arts Center for Trick-or-Treating from 4:30–6:30pm, with a parade commencing at 6:00pm. Friday, Oct. 27. Community Arts Center, 10046 Church Street. Free.

CRAFT CLASSES

{Pictured here: Patched, open-fingered mittens, courtesy of the Truckee Roundhouse, where you can learn to surge and piece together your own mittens. Instruction and supplies included.}

Pictured above: Patched, open-fingered mittens, courtesy of the Truckee Roundhouse, where you can learn to surge and piece together your own mittens. Instruction and supplies included. Save your spot for “Intro to Surging: Leg Warmers” for Oct. 30 by registering online or calling 530-582-4007. Photo courtesy of the Truckee Roundhouse.

Mountain Lotus hosts a two-day "Foundations of Flight: Aerial Yoga ~ Level One 25 Hour Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher Training & Weekend Immersion." Visit the website to register for $500 student tuition or $1,000 for the teacher pathway level. Friday, Oct. 6 through Sunday, Oct. 8. Mountain Lotus in both Tahoe City and Truckee. Email inquiries to kelleerichyoga@gmail.com.
Singer/songwriter Alice Osborn leads an online workshop on songwriting as storytelling called “Telling A Story About Your Truth.” Saturday, Oct. 25, 3:00–5:00pm PST. Sponsored by the University of North Carolina at Asheville. Visit the website to register for $20 tickets.
Check out crafty courses at the Truckee Roundhouse, such as their “Intermediate Surging: Upcycling Mittens” workshop! Learn the basics of serging, then make fingerless mittens out of upcycled sweaters and fleece. Class includes instruction and all materials. Monday, Oct. 30, 4:00–7:00pm, Truckee Roundhouse, 12116 Chandelle Way, Suite E3.

PACT NEWS

{Pictured here: Detail from the new “Path” mosaic by Arteclettica, a new public art installation commissioned by the Town of Truckee, located on Brockway Road. Photo courtesy of the Town of Truckee.}

Pictured above: Detail from the new “Path” mosaic by Arteclettica, a new public art installation commissioned by the Town of Truckee, located on Brockway Road. A series of tiles pull in the gaze at varying depths—one tile a hand-painted scene of a boat and two passengers; another a cloudy turquoise tile reminiscent of waters on Tahoe’s
East Shore. Ribbon-cutting attendees embrace in a second photo.
Photos courtesy of the Town of Truckee.

As reported in the Sierra Sun, Truckee Town Council held its general meeting, when members of the Public Art Commission of Truckee provided the Council with a PACT Work Plan for their review. As one of fourteen state-recognized Cultural Districts in California, Truckee has potential for an advanced fundraising strategy that would fund multiple public art projects.

Join PACT to celebrate another public art installation on Donner Lake! Meet us within the eastern portion of the parking lot at West End on Tuesday, October 17, at 4:00pm. Find PACT’s October agenda here. Follow TAA on Instagram and Facebook for updates.

PARTICIPATE IN PUBLIC ART

{Pictured here: A painted mural entitled, “Finding Your Fold,” by Erik Burke and students of the Sierra Expeditionary Learning School, who studied Mexican art to imagine our Truckee-Tahoe community as several interweaving stories.}

Pictured above: A painted mural entitled, “Finding Your Fold,” by Erik Burke and students of the Sierra Expeditionary Learning School, who studied Mexican art to imagine our Truckee-Tahoe community as several interweaving stories, symbolized by the long-braided hair of the mural’s female subject, whose long black braids interlace with faces and regional scenes. She faces the purple blooms and the sun on the horizon.
Image courtesy of the Public Art Commission of Truckee.

Play a part in updating Truckee’s Public Art Inventory and Public Art Map! PACT needs your help in locating additional pieces, capturing new images, and filling in some of the blanks in their Public Art Inventory as they develop strategies for funding and implementing future projects.

Have ideas for revision or new art installation? Submit a Public Comment at the next PACT meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 4:00–6:00pm, Trout Creek Room at Truckee Town Hall, 10183 Truckee Airport Road.

Image of colorful triangles and the phrase, "Art Moves Mountains: Renew Your Membership"

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