History shall speak for itself
History shall speak for itself presents a collaged chronology of Indigenous female representation in filmmaking. The black-and-white archival images typify traditional Western methods of documenting Indigenous women involved in their various domestic tasks while disengaged from the camera. The contemporary image, by contrast, features a group of women looking directly at the lens, outfitted in Indigenous attire influenced by European aesthetics, and posed against a stark white background as if in a fashion shoot. // History shall speak for itself, présente une chronologie en image de la représentation féminine autochtone dans la réalisation de films. Les images d'archives en noir et blanc illustrent les méthodes occidentales traditionnelles de représentation des femmes autochtones vacant à leurs tâches domestiques. A l’inverse, les représentations actuelles représentent un groupe de femmes regardant directement l'objectif, vêtues de vêtements autochtones influencés par l'esthétique européenne et posant sur un fond blanc comme une séance de mode.
History shall speak for itself (2018), originally commissioned by CONTACT Photo (Toronto) presents a collaged chronology of Indigenous female representation in filmmaking. The black-and-white archival images typify traditional, Western methods of documenting Indigenous women involved in their various domestic tasks while disengaged from the camera. The contemporary image, by contrast, features a group of women looking directly at the lens, outfitted in Indigenous attire influenced by European aesthetics, and posed against a stark white background as if in a fashion shoot. The models include documentary filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin, Quebecois actress Dominique Pétin, costume designer Swaneige Bertrand, film student Catherine Boivin, as well as the artist and her sister. Monnet physically brings together these two very different methods of representation by interweaving strips of images in order to emphasize the idea of layering information while suggesting a kind of timeline.
