Horner Park To Honor Local Native American Roots Through Mound Project
By Char DastonHorner Park To Honor Local Native American Roots Through Mound Project
By Char DastonHorner Park may soon house an effigy mound, a small hill shaped like a coiled serpent in honor of Native American communities.
The sacred burial mound at Cahokia in western Illinois is still standing, but all Chicago-area mounds have been destroyed, including one at the site of what is now a Brown Line station in Lakeview.
The mound will feature native grasses, and will be part of an outdoor museum dedicated to indigenous history.
Local artist Santiago X joins the Morning Shift to discuss the process and mission behind building an effigy mound.
A Mound Stomping Ceremony
Construction of the mound began with a mound stomping ceremony by local tribes, shown here:
The next mound stomping ceremony will be held Sept. 15 in Horner Park. The event is open to the public.
The Significance of Building a Mound
Santiago X: Mounds haven’t been built in North America since the founding of the United States….Taking us out of the past tense and this archaeological speak was a motivation behind this project—to really empower contemporary indigeneity throughout the landscape, and really give us a tangible place.
The Mound Will Include Augmented Reality
Santiago X: A lot of people think that mounds are full or pottery shards and skulls…but we’re trying to transcend that notion, and we’re gonna put digital artifacts onto this mound. This mound is gonna be augmented by phone apps you have in your hand, where you can scan the symbology of the mound embedded on river rocks throughout the site, and pull up digital archives of how the mound was constructed, and the history of the area. [The apps will be] potentially even open-source, where people can contribute their own memories of this mound.
GUEST: Santiago X, artist
LEARN MORE: Horner Park Could Become Home To Mound Celebrating Area’s Native American History (Block Club Chicago 8/14/18)
Mound Project To Celebrate Area’s Native American History At Horner Park Could Break Ground in September (Block Club Chicago 8/22/18)
Map Quest: Searching for Chicago’s ‘Lizard Mound’ (Curious City 4/14/18)
Santiago X’s website