#110: Is there any public art by Indigenous artists in your area? If so, visit it and learn about the artists.
My lunch date with Ralph today consisted of a lovely walk around the Total Aboriginal Trail, a collection of public art installations on MacDonald Island Park. I'll be honest I am very biased when it comes to this project as I was on the planning committee (to be clear my small contribution paled to that of Alice Martin, Buffy Cheecham, Ana Maria Mendez and the other committee members). The theme of the trail is the Seven Sacred Teachings of love, respect, courage, honesty, wisdom, humility and truth. After receiving amazing submissions, the committee chose artistic concepts from three local Indigenous artists from the Wood Buffalo region (Treasure Cooper, Frederick McDonald, Christopher Hamacher) and four Canadian Indigenous artists (Jason Carter (Canmore), Susan Point (Vancouver), Heather Shillinglaw (Edmonton), and Carey Newman (Victoria)). While familiar with two of the artists' works quite well, I was really looking forward to this opportunity to get to know more about the five other amazing Indigenous artists. Here are very short snapshots of all the artists who contributed to the Total Aboriginal Trail:
Art inspires dialogue and change, just what we need for reconciliation. One of the highlights of today's walk was the opportunity to meet two wonderful women and discuss reconciliation and a little bit of history. I think of other walks we take, where I likely wouldn't have stopped and had a meaningful conversation about the art along the way.
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About me
I grew up in Athabasca, AB and have spent the majority of my life in Northern Alberta or Montreal, PQ. My husband has been in Fort McMurray since the 70s and continues to love this town and all that it has to offer. We are avid outdoor enthusiasts, spending our summer weekends quadding and camping. As Opimian members we thoroughly enjoy wine pairings and tastings and are working on our wine collection. Ralph is a carpenter by trade and has framed more houses in Fort McMurray than I could count and knows the city inside and out. I work all throughout the region from the NWT to Janvier for the tribal council. My passion is doodling and photography which is featured throughout the website (various mediums), writing, Indigenous studies, and learning in general. Categories |