Hestia and Homelands

By Monte Belmonte,

Kaliis Smith

Published August 3, 2023 at 8:22 AM EDT

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1 of 4 — Hestia Collective at restoration:Fab413

Members of the Hestia Collective speak with Monte Belmonte at the site of their mural's restoration

Kaliis Smith / New England Public Media

Four people stand inside a recording booth around a table, a woman to the left dressed in black holds a chair in front of her, to her right and behind the table around which they are all posed is a man in a black and white floral shirt with a baseball cap, in front of him is a computer monitor and a microphone on a boom stand, to the right of that person is an older man in a dark blue shirt and light pants who holds a manila folder full of papers. To his right is a darker skinned woman in jeans and a black hoodie with red designs on the sleeves and glasses who smiles broadly with her mouth open.

2 of 4 — Pocumtuck:Fab413

(from left) Amalia Fourhawks of Firehawk Studios, Monte Belmonte, David Brule of the Nolumbeka Project and the Pocumtuck Homelands Festival, and Kaliis Smith at the NEPM Studios

Tony Dunne

A scaffold and scissor lift stand close to a painted wall. Though there is a full mural on the way, some areas are scuffed or washed out, with patches underneath where new paint has been applied.

3 of 4 — Hestia Restoration workers: Fab413

Restorers at work at The Hestia Collective's "A History of Women in Northampton" Mural .

Kaliis Smith / New England Public Media

Four women stand below a massive mural depicting women throughout the ages

4 of 4 — Hestia at the mural:Fab413

(from left) Susan Pontious, Mariah Fee, Linda Bond, and Rebecca Muller at The Hestia Collective's "The History of Women in Northampton from 1600-1980" Mural as it is being restored in Northampton

Kaliis Smith / New England Public Media

It's all about collectives today.

There's the group of women who came together to make community art about women's history in Northampton. The Hestia Collective formed in the late '70s out of other women's art collectives in the area, but through much efforts and a couple of grants made the "A History of Women in Northampton" mural that abuts the Masonic St. parking lot. The mural is currently being restored and there's a celebration in honor of that happening on August 2nd. We speak with Linda Bond, Susan Pontious, and Mariah Fee who were a part of the original collective, researched the women depicted, and painted the original mural from 1978-1980, and Rebecca Muller who helmed the previous restoration in 2003 about the importance of this particular work, and what happens when community art meets feminism.

And there's the people on whose land we currently reside. The Pocumtuck Homeland Festival celebrates it's 10th year of modern observance this weekend in Great Falls with events all weekend. Amidst the art, music, and general welcoming of the occasion will be a wealth of education about the various indigenous populations that gather together. We speak with author, teacher, and president of the Nolumbeka Project, David Brule, and proprietor of Firehawk Studios, traditionally-inspired artist Amalia Fourhawks about the importance of such gatherings as a means of centering, teaching, and becoming more aware of the stories right in front of us.