TEK Walks with Matthew Bigos

390A Summit Road,Exeter RI 02822

04 December, 2021

Description

Traditional Ecological Walk with Matthew Bigos (Schaghticoke): "Hands On: Gathering Materials and Manufacturing Tools for the Winter Season" In the TEK Walks, Indigenous Educators will share Traditional Ecological Knowledge as the group walks in the environment around Tomaquag Museum known today as Arcadia Management Area, but is the homelands to the Narragansett Nation. Matthew Bigos is a museum professional, graphic designer, and exhibit designer. A citizen of the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation, whose reservation lands are located next to the town of Kent, Connecticut alongside the Housatonic River. Matt draws inspiration from his tribal elders, who include the late Scholar Trudie Lamb-Richmond, to expand his knowledge of traditional tool making, hunting and fishing materials, and weaponry. Matt’s graphic design specialties include business branding and apparel graphics. His exhibit designs have been featured in cultural institutions such as Mystic Seaport, Mashantucket Pequot Museum, Connecticut Valley Tobacco Museum; and most recently the We Are The Seeds-Philadelphia exhibit space. Matt’s designs are contemporary, decolonized, and from a progressive Native perspective. The Tomaquag Museum is Rhode Island's only Indigenous Museum dedicated to sharing the culture, arts, history, and lifeways of the Indigenous people of Southern New England. Tomaquag was awarded the National Medal for Museum and Library Service in 2016, the nation's highest honor given to celebrate institutions that respond to societal needs in innovative ways, making a difference for individuals, families, and their communities. At the Tomaquag Museum, we strive to provide engaging public education that not only promotes thoughtful dialogue but also creates social change that will lead to the empowerment of Indigenous peoples within our communities.