I was born at the foot of Twin Peaks in San Francisco.
Up the hill from our flat below street level was a large vacant lot
 filled with wild anise and blackberries, 
poppies, yarrow, morning glories, nasturtiums…
I would climb down from the street, to range around and disappear into the sounds and smells,
the spirits of the place.  
As a child it was natural to get lost in my senses, and to learn what the Earth feels like. 
Later, I lived in the redwoods and began traveling;
the Southwest’s high deserts, the lakes of Minnesota,  the Dakota Badlands,
Chaco Canyon where just before dawn, the stars come to dance on the Earth,  
on Brazilian beaches, a humid summer day  in Russia,  
or drunk on the graciousness of Polynesia 
I learned these places through how they feel, what they sound like,
how they smell and taste.  
I go to the Earth for inspiration, solace, to play, learn, hide, grieve or find courage.
I live her rhythms.  
My paintings reflect kinship with the natural world and its consciousness.  
The richest vein of creativity for me and what I explore in my work,
is this sense of belonging. 

Nato Inn Ni Maki  -  Rose Imai, 2020

Bio

Rose Thater Braan-Imai (Tuscarora) is a self-taught artist. Her surrealist figurations explore the exquisiteness of our connections to the Earth expressing the sensuality and intimacy of the natural world as experienced through the human body. She works primarily in oils enjoying the depth and range of feeling she finds in their texture and in the way they carry light. She is the Founding Director of The Native American Academy, leading creative projects (Sculpture Garden of Native Science and Learning) and transcultural dialogues between Indigenous and Western worldviews to forward the potential for new knowledge using the lens of the Native paradigm, indigenous learning processes and Native science.

From 1989 to 2000 she served as the Director of Education at University of California (UC) Berkeley's Center for Particle Astrophysics, presenting at national and international forums, including the National Academy of Sciences, the Banff Centre, Goddard Space Flight Center and The National Science Foundation. Prior to 1989, Rose worked in theater (the American Conservatory Theater), television (KQED-TV), and as Liason and Assistant to  writer/critic/producer Ralph J. Gleason, co-founder of Rolling Stone magazine before heading her own production company.  

Selected Publications

Langscape Magazine
The Sentinel
Mind Before Matter: The Primacy of Consciousness Project
Indigenous Spirituality at Work
Grandfather, How Do I Learn? 


Selected Talks, Presentations, Workshops: 2000 - 2019

The Sculpture Garden of Native Science and Learning, The Need for a 21st Century Science Coherent with the Natural Order, Brower Center, Berkeley

The Sculpture Garden of Native Science and Learning, Learning the World Through the Indigenous Worldview, IFIP Presentation, Santa Fe, NM


Exploring Leadership Colloquium, A View into Native Science, Indigenous Languages and Learning, Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland, VA

The Tahlequah Dialogues, A dialogue on Diversity. Two meetings, held in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and Washington, D.C. between members of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and Indigenous participants representing tribes from across the North American continent. Tahlequah, OK

The Six Directions, A Pattern for Understanding Native American Educational Values, Diversity and the Need for Cognitive Pluralism: Plenary talk, Southeastern Consortium for Minority Education, University of Arizona

National Science Foundation Colloquium: Modern Science Viewed Through Native Eyes, a Presentation on Transcultural Education

Banff Dialogues: Exploring the Boundaries between Indigenous and Western Science, Banff, Alberta

Developing Scientific Leadership. A three-day workshop developed as an inquiry into leadership examining the qualities inherent in effective communication, vision,  aspirations, personal values, ethics, intuition and relationship engaging logical and intuitive capabilities, UC Berkeley

The Career Management Series. A values based workshop series on developing a career path in consonance with personal values, aspirations, interests and needs.  Center for Particle Astrophysics, UC Berkeley

Broadening the Horizons in Physics and English: 1999 ADE Summer Seminar West, University of Montana, Association of Departments of English, ADE Bulletin, #124 -

Walking in Two Worlds:  Workshop de-mystifying Western Science Culture, Native American Studies Conference, Lake Superior State University

Using Technology to Support Cultural Restoration: J. Zerneke, P. Shestople, A. Prescott, R. von Thater-Braan, Pilot Program, American Indian Public Charter School, Oakland, California

Knowing the Sky - Transcultural Astronomy Summer Camp:  D. Begay, N. Maryboy, J.Wilkerson, R von Thater-Braan, American Indian Public Charter School, Oakland, California

Summer Institute on the Cultural Restoration of Oppressed Indigenous Peoples. Conference Proceedings: "Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision", M. Battiste, UBC, Introduction pg. xvii, University of Saskatchewan

National Convocation on Science and Engineering Doctoral Education. The Career Management Series, National Academy of Sciences

Education and Teaching Human Values, AHIMSA Foundation, Conference on Education & Human Values, UC Berkeley

Mentoring in A Changing Culture, Council of Graduate Schools, Washington, D.C.

The Changing Culture in Science Conference, a national conference on the need for diversity, creating a new model of science sensitive to societal needs. The development process and the 3-day meeting followed a model of community learning to develop facilitation, management and interpersonal communication skills. UC Berkeley.