For Immediate Release
Five Women Team Up to Publish Indigenous Knowledge exploring “Box of Treasures”
Lummi Island, Washington, USA – February 18, 2017 - It has taken twenty years for Sharon Grainger, photographer, and Pamela Pakker-Kozicki, writer, to establish the relationships, create the portraits and record the interviews for their Kickstarter book project on indigenous knowledge, “In Their Hands: The Keepers of the Box of Treasures. ” Click HERE for Preview of Kickstarter. Readers will experience the Kwakwkak’wakw indigenous culture’s resilience, their focus on reconciliation and their strength through the faces, hands and stories of the older members of the community.
Grainger and Pakker-Kozicki are collaborating in this project with First Nations women Andrea Cranmer and Pewi Alfred, of the First Nations community of Alert Bay, British Columbia, focal point of the project. Zenia Pakker, videographer, joins these four women to film the team’s efforts. The Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds to finish and publish “In Their Hands” will launch on February 25, 2017 at 4 pm PST and end on March 27, 2017 at 11 pm PST.
“The Box of Treasures” is both physical and metaphysical, holding carved traditional masks as well as birthrights, dances, songs and more. Grainger and Pakker-Kozicki’s website, www.dos-polacas.com, will be hosting a series of videos during March 2017 of First Nations community members explaining what “Box of Treasures” means to them.
Grainger, a professional photographer with over thirty years, is a National Geographic Photo Instructor with photography published in Smithsonian publications. This book would not be possible without her long-time relationships within the First Nations communities. Please click HERE for more about Grainger and Portrait Photography.
While Grainger focuses on creating stunning portraits of the older community members, Pakker-Kozicki listens and records their stories, humor, knowledge and reflections. In 1997 Mexico, Pakker-Kozicki’s writings about the remote indigenous Raramuri’s culture, history and beliefs were published alongside Grainger’s stunning photography to raise funds for the Raramuri community. Pakker-Kozicki and Grainger started Dos Polacas LLC to “create bridges between cultures,” using photography and recorded interviews. “In Their Hands” is their latest venture.
“In Their Hands” will be both a book and a language education resource. Stories recorded by Pakker-Kozicki in English and Kwak’wala, the language of the Kwakwaka’wakw, will be available online for language students and the community.
Contact:
Sharon Grainger
[email protected]
P.O. Box 152 Lummi Island WA 98262
360-758-7742
Pamela Pakker-Kozicki
[email protected]
Mailing address: 2442 NW Market Street #492 Seattle, WA 98107
206-478-0568
Lummi Island, Washington, USA – February 18, 2017 - It has taken twenty years for Sharon Grainger, photographer, and Pamela Pakker-Kozicki, writer, to establish the relationships, create the portraits and record the interviews for their Kickstarter book project on indigenous knowledge, “In Their Hands: The Keepers of the Box of Treasures. ” Click HERE for Preview of Kickstarter. Readers will experience the Kwakwkak’wakw indigenous culture’s resilience, their focus on reconciliation and their strength through the faces, hands and stories of the older members of the community.
Grainger and Pakker-Kozicki are collaborating in this project with First Nations women Andrea Cranmer and Pewi Alfred, of the First Nations community of Alert Bay, British Columbia, focal point of the project. Zenia Pakker, videographer, joins these four women to film the team’s efforts. The Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds to finish and publish “In Their Hands” will launch on February 25, 2017 at 4 pm PST and end on March 27, 2017 at 11 pm PST.
“The Box of Treasures” is both physical and metaphysical, holding carved traditional masks as well as birthrights, dances, songs and more. Grainger and Pakker-Kozicki’s website, www.dos-polacas.com, will be hosting a series of videos during March 2017 of First Nations community members explaining what “Box of Treasures” means to them.
Grainger, a professional photographer with over thirty years, is a National Geographic Photo Instructor with photography published in Smithsonian publications. This book would not be possible without her long-time relationships within the First Nations communities. Please click HERE for more about Grainger and Portrait Photography.
While Grainger focuses on creating stunning portraits of the older community members, Pakker-Kozicki listens and records their stories, humor, knowledge and reflections. In 1997 Mexico, Pakker-Kozicki’s writings about the remote indigenous Raramuri’s culture, history and beliefs were published alongside Grainger’s stunning photography to raise funds for the Raramuri community. Pakker-Kozicki and Grainger started Dos Polacas LLC to “create bridges between cultures,” using photography and recorded interviews. “In Their Hands” is their latest venture.
“In Their Hands” will be both a book and a language education resource. Stories recorded by Pakker-Kozicki in English and Kwak’wala, the language of the Kwakwaka’wakw, will be available online for language students and the community.
- The book will contain black and white portraits of 75 indigenous seniors and these seniors’ descriptions of their culture; the reader will experience this complex, ancient culture as it is today, resilient and strong.
- 90% of the words in “In Their Hands” will be those of Kwakwaka’wakw seniors, transcribed from interviews.
- 100% of the net proceeds of the sales of the book will go to Kwak’wala language education in Alert Bay.
Contact:
Sharon Grainger
[email protected]
P.O. Box 152 Lummi Island WA 98262
360-758-7742
Pamela Pakker-Kozicki
[email protected]
Mailing address: 2442 NW Market Street #492 Seattle, WA 98107
206-478-0568