Matika Wilbur facts for kids

Matika Wilbur (born 1984) is a talented Native American photographer and teacher. She comes from Washington state. Matika is a member of the Tulalip and Swinomish tribes. She is famous for her photography project, Project 562. She also co-hosts the All My Relations podcast with Adrienne Keene.

Early Life and Education

Matika Lorraine Wilbur was born in 1984. Her father was Tulalip and her mother was Swinomish. This means she belongs to both the Tulalip and Swinomish tribes.

Matika grew up mostly on the Swinomish reservation. Her family worked as commercial fishermen. She went to high school in La Conner, Washington. Later, she studied at the Brooks Institute of Photography. She earned a degree in advertising there.

Her Native name is Tsa-Tsiq. This special name means "She Who Teaches."

Matika's Career in Photography

Before becoming a full-time photographer, Matika worked in fashion photography in Los Angeles. However, she found this work wasn't what she truly wanted to do. She also spent time teaching at Tulalip Heritage High School.

Her Photography Projects

Matika Wilbur has created several important photography projects. One early project was We Are One People. This collection featured photographs of Coast Salish elders. Another project, We Emerge, showed Native people in modern settings. Her third collection, Save the Indian and ..., focused on Native youth. It showed how young people express their unique identities.

Her project "All Alone" from 2012 looked at how Native American cultures changed. This happened between the 1880s and 1980s.

In 2013, she created "iHuman." This cultural project explored the idea of Native Americans living with two cultures. It showed how they balance their traditional ways with modern life.

Matika has a special way of making her art. She creates black-and-white silver gelatin prints. Then, she carefully adds color by hand.

Project 562: Documenting Native Cultures

Project 562 is Matika Wilbur's biggest project. She started it to photograph Indigenous peoples today. Her goal is to visit and photograph members of every US tribe on their own lands. Matika began this amazing journey in November 2012.

She raised over $35,000 through a Kickstarter campaign to help with her travel costs. Since then, she has traveled more than 250,000 miles. She has met and photographed many Indigenous people across the country.

The project's name, "Project 562," refers to the number of Indigenous North American tribes officially recognized by the United States when she started. This number changes as tribes continue their efforts to regain legal status. Matika shared that her grandmother inspired her to do this work in a dream. She works closely with tribal leaders and members to create her photographs.

Matika created Project 562 as a modern answer to Edward S. Curtis's photographs. Curtis took over 40,000 photos of 80 tribes about a century before Matika.

All My Relations Podcast

Matika also co-hosts the All My Relations podcast. She works on this podcast with Adrienne Keene. The podcast features interviews and talks about important issues for Native American communities. One topic they discuss is indigenous food sovereignty, which is about Native communities controlling their own food systems. The podcast has been praised by groups like the A.V. Club and the Toronto Star.

Selected Exhibitions

• 2014: Photographic Presence and Contemporary Indians: Matika Wilbur's Project 562, Tacoma Art Museum, Washington
• 2014–2016: As We See It: Contemporary Native American Photographers, Yekaterinburg Museum of Fine Arts, Ekaterinburg, Russia; The Fifth Biennial of Contemporary Photography; Novosibirsk State Art Museum, Novosibirsk, Russia; 516 ARTS, Albuquerque, NM
• 2016: Seed of Culture: The Portraits and Stories of Native American Women, Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University
• March 13 - June 13, 2021: Whatcom Museum: Seeds of Culture, Bellingham, WA
• October, 2018 - January, 2018: El Segundo Museum of Art Matriarchs Exhibition, El Segundo, CA
• November, 2018 - December, 2018: Anne Kittrell Art Gallery, Project 562, Campus Collection Series, Fayetteville, AR