A Neyaashiinigmiing artist has been selected to have one of their paintings installed as a public art piece as part of reconciliation efforts.
Artist Charmaine Jenner was selected by a jury from the Oxenden Indigenous Art Project to have this piece affixed to the side of Coordinating Committee member Kelsey Carriere’s home, who is of Métis heritage.
Carriere says the project started from conversations held among a group of neighbours in the village of Oxenden, at a summer picnic meant to celebrate Canada’s 150th.
She says they then quickly realized if they were looking back on the early inhabitants of the village, the last 150 years is only a part of the story, as Indigenous people have stewarded the area for over 10,000 years. In response, the group of neighbours set out to find how they can honour the significant history of the local Indigenous people and help right the historic wrongs.
“Upon pulling out the oldest history books we had access to, the oldest photos we had, we realized what a settler perspective we had,” says Carriere.
Carriere says they put out a call for proposals for Indigenous artists to propose a piece of large-scale public art. While they received strong submissions, the jury made up of local residents and Indigenous artists, youth and leaders, settled on Jenner’s art piece depicting a crane.
The crane represents leadership and speaks on the behalf of people for the good of the community and nation.
Carriere describes Jenner’s painting as having layers of story telling, symbolism and depth.
“The crane is standing on one leg which represents balance and stability. It has these feathers representing the past, present and future that are all connected in everything we do and all the decisions that we make. You can see in the painting the crane is speaking, it is using its voice, it is using its platform to share these teachings and these messages which the jury all felt was just the perfect message that we wanted to share,” says Carriere.
Jenner says, “as an Indigenous Anishnaabeh Kwe, my heart is filled with gratitude, to be connected with the message of awareness and help in educating our non-Indigenous neighbours in the spirit of reconciliation and allyship, building strong foundations for future generations.”
Carriere says, “I’m so honoured to be part of this project. Having worked on many community art projects over the years I know the power of public art and am so happy to see First Nation and settler neighbours come together in the spirit of reconciliation to celebrate our commitment to building a strong, caring and collaborative future together. There are so many historical wrongs to be righted and this project brings this deep and complex work to the surface in a meaningful and celebratory way.”
Carriere says the painting is aimed to be installed in mid-August at the old Oxenden General Store.
The community-funded art project is currently fundraising for the artist commission and installation. More details can be found on the Oxenden Indigenous Art Project website.
