Speak for the Peaks

Art Initiative

Speak for the Peaks is an art initiative calling for submissions of art that address Snowbowl’s ongoing destruction of a sacred mountain known as the San Francisco Peaks. More importantly, this project seeks to unite and revitalize our collective expressions that hold this mountain and her many relatives as sacred as we collectively remember the mountain as:  

Tsii Bina to Acoma:
Dził Tso to Apache:
Dook’o’oosłííd to Diné:
Nuvaʼtukyaʼov to Hopi:
Huassapatch to Havasupai:
Wik’hanbaja to Hualapai:
ʼAmat ʼIikwe Nyava to Mojave:
Nuvaxatuh to Southern Paiute:
Wi:mun Kwa to Yavapai:
Sunha K’hbchu Yalanne to Zuni.

As a sacred summit, this mountain nourishes the various life ways that are intricate, biotic and a repeating of seasonal ecological breathing that is as patterned and diverse as the more than 200 songs that reside within one ceremony (among various).

The aim is to use expression to educate and move our Indigenous relatives, as well as foster relations through these conversation that center on our collective wellness as they are one and the same with this sacred site.

Additionally, we are aiming to also support struggling Indigenous artists during this pandemic by offering a $900 prize for first place (with a $100 donation to a person/organization of the winners choosing) and several $50 runner up prizes for each phase of this art initiative.

#SpeakForThePeaks

❀Pictured above is the mountain chickadee that resides on the mountain year round.
Fourth Phase of the Speak for the Peaks Art Initiative
( June 13th - July 24th; deadline for submissions has been pushed to July 17th, winners announced July 24th).

Complete the following prompt to qualify for consideration of prizes (1st place receives $900 with $100 donated to a person or organization of the winner’s choosing, 2nd runner-up receives $400, and several $50 runner-up prizes).

Instructions: through your chosen medium create/express through your chosen medium, a work that is loosely guided by the following prompt: 

“The mountain is a being, that like any person requires social interaction to retain connection.

 As the peaks experience desecration, climate change, and proposals for future expansion, what actions are needed from us as a community to restore the imbalances the mountain endures and also the imbalances we absorb?”


To gain and create more insight, a little research goes a long way! ❤️

Also be sure to carefully review the entry details and submission form at speakforthepeaks.com before starting on your submission so you are aware of judges’ criteria.

Here are a list of mediums to give you a few ideas:
Visual art, written and performed song, choreographed dance, sculpture, interactive piece, infographic, digital comic strip, rug(s), short film, video essay, Tiktok video, YouTube video, written work, spoken word, skate video, poem, jewelry, Twitter essay, illustration, podcast, audio/digital story-telling, digital essay, public service announcement, Instagram story, creative written work, photography, protest signs, etc…

Submissions should also be hosted on a social media platform for others to access and find by searching #speakforthepeaks.

For this third phase of the art initiative, submissions will be accepted anytime before midnight of July 17th. Winners will be announced on July 24th. 

Good luck everyone! 💓✊🏽🏔

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General Terms
Upon submission of an artwork to the Speak for the Peaks art initiative, artists, content creators, and any other entities with a vested interest in the artwork submitted agree to the following terms and conditions without limitation:
- All submissions will be considered public and sharable on social media (if possible) and across all other public platforms upon and after submission and up until the totality of the Speak for the Peaks art initiative has ended.  
- Submissions will not be anonymous, and must be attributed to their creator(s) to qualify.
    - Submissions may or may not be hosted on the Speak for the Peaks website which others can view and share, as a living document. 
   - Submissions belong to their creator(s), hence direct permission will always be sought from creators of said artworks before being used for future announcements and/or possible collaborations not connected with the Speak for the Peaks arts initiative.

✧Participation/Engagement: 
When considering submissions, Indigenous relations of the region will be given priority; Indigenous relatives who are not of the area are welcome to join and will be considered for prizes. Submissions of art, created by non-indigenous relatives will not be considered for prizes but are encouraged to create expression that corresponds to acts of solidarity. Collaboration, sharing of fellow contestant’s content, and open dialogue are all encouraged. While this is a competition, responding to other’s work in a manner that lends to lateral violence will result in disqualification. Speak for the Peaks organizers have complete discretion in matters of disqualification.   

Submissions will be viewed by a panel of Indigenous judges that will base their evaluations on the following criteria:
1. The clarity of an art submission’s messaging as it relates to answering the prompt (based on the applicable phase of the Speak for the Peaks art initiative).
2. The creative originality of the art submission.
3. The material composition/quality of the art submission as it relates to the design.
4. The the overall impression of the art submission – Does the art submission positively influence our relations to one another at a local and global level? Overall, does the artwork stand firm in relation to Indigenous concepts?

Additional Considerations:

Poor quality 
Submissions will not be considered if the quality of the submission is inadequate, as in, digitally unreadable, corrupt as a file, or difficult to decipher. Creators are reminded that their submissions will be viewed not only by a panel of judges, but by those within their regional community and the larger community of Indigenous folks and allies across Turtle Island; hence, the message of your submission should be digitally accessible, of readable quality, and appropriate size so it can be transmitted across platforms.    

Marketing 
Submissions that contain large and over-sized branding/watermarks will not be hosted on the Speak for the Peaks website and will not be considered for prizes. 

Incomplete/Incorrectly Filled Submission Form
If we receive submission forms that are incomplete or incorrectly filled out (generally) these submissions will not be used or considered for prizes. Judges are given access to a wide range of submissions within a limited set of time (to engage, evaluate, and make their decisions in time for announcements); judges' capacity to address and remedy every participant’s incomplete form is time that detracts from focusing on judging, therefore incomplete submissions will be placed at the bottom of the pile and IF time permits, will be retrieved for judging. 

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The Speak for the Peaks art Initiative is made possible through the  Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous People, Inc. and the Interoots Initiative.