By Andrew Hay
SANTA FE, New Mexico (Reuters) – A Native American activist and artist who became a victim of America’s ubiquitous gun violence during a visit to New Mexico last year returned to the state to exhibit work that includes paintings of his suspected shooter.
Banging a drum inside a Santa Fe art space during his exhibition opening this month, Jacob Johns, a 41-year-old Spokane, Washington, artist, sang as members of the nearby Santa Clara Pueblo danced near a portrait of Ryan Martinez.
Martinez is accused of shooting Johns and faces trial Oct. 8 for attempted murder in an alleged hate crime. He has pleaded not guilty.
Much of the work in the show tackled Johns’ main concerns, justice for indigenous peoples and climate justice. While gun violence affects Americans from many walks of life — the U.S. surgeon general has declared it a public health crisis — Johns’ portrait of Martinez tells a particular story, of colonialist violence against indigenous peoples and the inter-generational trauma caused.