Clockwise from top left, artists Leila Dufresne, Garnett Tootoosis Sr., Charity Allyson Boxell, and Carl Thunderblanket. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW staff)

By Angela Brown

Celebrating tradition

New exhibit at Allen Sapp Gallery highlights Indigenous culture, traditions

Nov 25, 2021 | 11:33 AM

A fascinating new show at the Allen Sapp Gallery focuses on Indigenous culture and traditions.

Called ‘Contemporary Art of the Sipi-iyiniwak: The River People,’ Chief Poundmaker Museum and the Allen Sapp Gallery partnered on the project.

A special reception for the show was held Wednesday evening. Floyd Favel and Leah Garven are the co-curators of the exhibit.

“I’m really excited to welcome the contemporary artists of our time from this region to show their art here at the Allen Sapp Gallery,” Garven said.

Garven is especially thrilled to offer the project as a collaboration with Chief Poundmaker Museum.

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Favel noted the project offers an interesting perspective from local area artists. As for the title of the show, he explained all the Indigenous peoples who live in this area are known as the
Sipi-iyiniwak, and this was one of their traditional territories.

In the future, Favel and Garven plan to work together again to highlight more projects from Indigenous artists in the region.

Artists Carl Thunderblanket, Audi Atcheynum, Garnett Tootoosis Sr., Leila Dufresne, Nicole Paskemin, Dana Standinghorn, Charity Allyson Boxell, Kelsey Whitehawk, and Larissa Kitchemonia are participating in The River People exhibit.

Floyd Favel, left, and Leah Garven are the co-curators of the exhibit. They briefly removed their masks at the event just to pose for the photo. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW staff)

Artist Charity Allyson Boxell said she is a direct ancestor of the Chief Poundmaker family line, and is proud of her heritage.

“I wanted to connect with my culture,” she said of taking part in the exhibit.

She submitted a painting of a headdress shimmering beneath a pink sky.

“I love the sunsets and sunrises of life. So I thought, why not make it bright and vibrant, and appreciate what the Creator has done for us,” Boxell said.

Carl Thunderblanket entered a number of pieces focusing on the rural landscape.

One painting shows a buffalo running on the terrain. He said it reflects the transition from the time of the buffalo to an agricultural way of life, around the 1800s when the buffalo herds began to deplete.

“That was the beginning of where Treaty started,” Thunderblanket said. “It kind of gives you the idea of what our leaders had to do for us to survive – moving from the buffalo hunt to agriculture. People were starving at the time. So it was the only way they could survive.”

The exhibit continues on the lower level of the local gallery until Jan. 15.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow