Elizabeth LaPensée papers

Collection — Container: digital collection

Identifier: 119.3593

Staff Only

The Elizabeth LaPensée papers are a digital collection containing graphics and videos relating to Honour Water (2016) and Thunderbird Strike (2017), two games created by LaPensée. Additional scope and content information can be found in the Contents List section of this finding aid.

The Elizabeth LaPensée papers are arranged in one series, which has been further divided into subseries. The digital files are accessible on-site at The Strong.

Dates

2016 - 2017

Creator

LaPensée, Elizabeth (Person)

Language

The materials in this collection are in English.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection is open for research use by staff of The Strong and by users of its library and archives. Though the donor has not transferred intellectual property rights (including, but not limited to any copyright, trademark, and associated rights therein) to The Strong, she has given permission for The Strong to make copies in all media for museum, educational, and research purposes.

Extent

912 Megabytes (Digital only.) : Accessible on-site at The Strong.

Additional Description

Abstract

The Elizabeth LaPensée papers are a digital collection containing graphics and videos relating to Honour Water (2016) and Thunderbird Strike (2017), two games created by LaPensée.

Biographical Note

Elizabeth LaPensée is a writer, artist, game designer, and professor who creates and studies Indigenous-led media. She is both Anishinaabe and Métis. In 2014, LaPensée earned her PhD in Interactive Arts & Technology from Simon Fraser University. In 2016, she joined Michigan State University as an Assistant Professor of Media & Information and Writing, Rhetoric & American Cultures.

LaPensée collaborates closely with Indigenous communities with the goal of passing on teachings which honor the past, reflect the present, and resonate with the future. She has received numerous awards for her digital games, animations, and leadership. Among her video games are Honour Water (2016), an Anishinaabe singing game for healing the water; Thunderbird Strike (2017), a side-scroller game highlighting environmental issues while protecting Indigenous land from the invading oil industry; and When Rivers Were Trails (2019), an adventure game following a displaced Anishinaabe in the 1890s heading west to California due to allotment acts. LaPensée has also designed analog games, including The Gift of Food (a board game about Northwest Native traditional foods).

System of Arrangement

Series I: Game design documentation, 2016-2017

Subseries A: Honour Water, 2016

Subseries B: Thunderbird Strike, 2017

Custodial History

The Elizabeth LaPensée papers were donated to The Strong in July 2019 as a gift from Elizabeth LaPensée. The papers were accessioned by The Strong under Object ID 119.3593 and were received from LaPensée as a digital transfer.