Mootookakio’ssin: [Distant Awareness] Blackfoot Digital Project Presentation

Mootookakio’ssin uses digital imagery to record historical Blackfoot objects in great detail in an effort to connect people living on traditional Blackfoot territory (southern Alberta, Canada) with objects housed in museum collections in Britain. The project’s title, Mootookakio’ssin, was given by Elder Leroy Little Bear and translates to “distant awareness.” Elders from the four Blackfoot tribes, Kainai, Piikani, Siksika and Amskapipiikani, are directing the project and selecting the museum objects. The digital imagery belongs to the Blackfoot people and will be accessed online through the Blackfoot Digital Library at the U of L. The project is funded by a grant from the New Frontiers in Research Fund, administered by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the sister project in the UK funded by an AHRC networking grant: Concepts Have Teeth: Digital Imaging and Blackfoot material culture in UK museums. Presenters include Danielle Heavy Head, Christine Clark, Melissa Shouting, Louisa Minkin and Josephine Mills