I first arrived in Provincetown in 1990-91 to begin a winter fellowship at the FAWC. My arrival coincided with the startling arrival of Coyote's throughout the cape. This was also the year before the 500th anniversary of Columbus's "discovery" of America and the return of the coyote to the cape seemed an appropriate response to the then unquestioned legacies of colonialism, it was as if coyote was saying, " Excuse me, We are still here".

As an indigenous artist, I am interested in the early tribal creation stories, where coyote is both trickster and fool, benevolent and witness. On this 400th anniversary of the landing of the Mayflower in Provincetown, I was interested in the resilience of the trickster who arrives on the back of the turtle, another benevolent being that makes it home in the water and is mythically instrumental in creating the world.

Duane has a show at Albert Merola Gallery, Provincetown, June 26 - July 15, 2020.

Swim for Life has a long history as an event and cultural collaboration. Its altruistic mission was founded in the period of anguish during the AIDS crisis and the awareness of the rising need to generate consciousness of both environmental and human well-being. Two subjects that are intertwined and interdependent.

In our current climate of COVID 19, the spirit of Swim for Life serves again as an affirmation of our resilience in the face of a pandemic and further need for environmental and personal well-being. In this image, the return of Coyote on the back of the turtle, two honored creatures in indigenous culture, can be seen delivering a sense of renewal founded on collaboration 

Duane Slick is an artist of Native American descent, the Meskwaki Nation of Iowa. He is a painter and storyteller, whose visual work includes black-and-white photo-realist paintings on linen and glass. His work has been described as “dream paintings whose aim is the exploration of matters spiritual, not physical.” Born in Waterloo, IA, Slick earned his BFA in painting from the University of Northern Iowa and his MFA in painting from the University of California, Davis. He began teaching painting and printmaking at RISD in 1995 and has also lectured at colleges and universities across the US and taught at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM.

His work has been exhibited widely- most recently in a national touring exhibition titled; “Native Art NOW!” organized by the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis and “Stretching the Canvas: Eight Decades Of Native Painting at the National Museum of the American Indian. His work is included in collections at The Des Moines Art Center,The Decordova Museum, the Peabody Essex Museum, and the Eitlejorg Museum among many others. Slick is currently represented by the Albert Merola Gallery in Provincetown, MA.