BRATTLEBORO — An all-day “Art as Medicine” extravaganza open to all ages will be held at 118 Elliot St. in Brattleboro on Sunday, April 17. The event is a fundraiser for local participants in this summer's 10th annual Gathering in Gratitude in South Dakota at the Gathering of Eagles on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
The Brattleboro-based Mahalo Art Center will lead a Vermont-based delegation to join internationals in Hill City, South Dakota, from June 21-25 and at the Singing Horse Trading Post on the reservation from June 26 to July 3.
Called “a feast for the soul” by past audience members, Gathering In Gratitude is a presentation of music, dance, visual art, poetry, and drama honoring the natural world.
According to a news release, Gathering in Gratitude is inspired by the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address, and with the encouragement of Mohawk Chief Tekaronianeken, Jake Swamp, and “unites the hearts and minds of those present in the spirit of gratitude for our natural world.”
Participants learn about the Thanksgiving Address, explore themes outdoors as well as indoors, and co-create a gift that is “educational, healing and visionary.”
This event runs from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. and participants may attend any part of the day-long extravaganza. Workshops will serve as warm-ups for the co-creation of the audience participatory Gathering in Gratitude evening presentation. Workshop attendees aren't obligated to participate in the evening presentation.