Akimel O’odham Songs & Trails

The exhibit From Above: Images of a Storied Land shares a vision of relic landscapes & southwestern vistas. Through aerial photography, Adriel Heisey elevates viewers to a world above the ground, & in so doing leads them to a different way of “seeing.” The lecture “Akimel O’odham Songs & Trails,” will explore this theme through a discussion of historic & prehistoric trails archaeology & Pima (O’odham) song traditions. Journeys told through song are readily identified as archaeological trails visible in the desert landscapes of southern Arizona & Mexico.

In a 21st century world dominated by GPS units & elaborate satellite navigational systems, O’odham song traditions illustrate the ways in which Native peoples perceived the landscape & moved about without the use of modern technologies or maps. J. Andrew Darling, an archaeologist at the Gila River Indian Community Cultural Resource Program, & Barnaby V. Lewis, cultural resource specialist & traditional singer from the Gila River Indian Community will illustrate these themes through a discussion of a single song series, its geography, & the O’odham traditional practice of song.

The lecture is Sept. 28th, at 7 p.m. in the Mesa Southwest Museum Theater (53 N. Macdonald St. - Mesa, Arizona). It is free & open to the public. The lecture was made possible in part by a grant from the Arizona Humanities Council Grant, the Center for Desert Archaeology, Mesa Southwest Museum, & Pueblo Grande Museum.

Mesa Southwest Museum

53 N Macdonald Street, Mesa, Arizona

Hours:
Tues.-Fri.. 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Closed Monday & city holidays.

Admission:
Adult - $8 Senior (65+) - $7 Student with ID - $6 Child (3-12) - $4 Age 2 & under – Free