Every Object Has A Ritual

by Selena Kearney Photographer Selena Kearney deftly pulls viewers into a complex dialogue through her series “Object / Ritual.” Over five years, she acquired, borrowed, and was given an array of costumes, masks, clothing, and sports fanwear that reference Native American regalia, and stereotypes of Indigenous culture. Photographing each in an isolated black box format, Kearney summoned her own pained curiosity, while through this visual choice offered rebuke to how sacred artifacts from Indigenous cultures have been similarly displayed as trophies in many museums and cultural institutions. In Kearney’s photographs, the cheap materiality of most of the objects draws attention to exaggerated associations under the guise of representing the homogenized “Indian.” Every Object Has A Ritual is presented in a format commonly associated with children’s picture books, demonstrating in its physicality how cultural harm has been perpetrated in seemingly innocuous ways. Publication of this series