In the past decade, Jane Ash Poitras, a First Nations woman from northern Alberta, has emerged as one of the most important Canadian artists of her generation. Raised by a German widow who powdered her dark skin and tried to make her straight hair curl, Poitras did not begin to fully explore her indigenous roots until adulthood. Seeking out her extended family and participating in profound cultural experiences, she began to discover the side of herself that she was denied as a child. At the same time, she made a commitment to her art. With the opportunity to pursue a Masters degree at Columbia University in New York, Poitras was at the centre of the North American contemporary art scene.In the past decade, Jane Ash Poitras, a First Nations woman from northern Alberta, has emerged as one of the most important Canadian artists of her generation. Raised by a German widow who powdered her dark skin and tried to make her straight hair curl, Poitras did not begin to fully explore her indigenous roots until adulthood. Seeking out her extended family and participating in profound cultural experiences, she began to discover the side of herself that she was denied as a child. At the same time, she made a commitment to her art. With the opportunity to pursue a Masters degree at Columbia University in New York, Poitras was at the centre of the North American contemporary art scene. Together, these dual influences shaped Poitras unique style, one that combines representational strategies of postmodern art collage, layering, overpainting, incorporation of found objects with a deep commitment to the politics and issues common to indigenous peoples. Cultural Memories and Imagined Futures situates Poitras's work in the national context of Canadian First Nations art during the late 1980s and early 1990s, the period when she began to receive wide recognition. It is the first book-length study to examine Poitras's career as a whole, recounting her development as an artist, participation in major exhibitions, and recognition as a significant Canadian and international artist. Along with detailed analyses of specific artworks, author Pamela McCallum has also compiled the most extensive bibliography of writings on Poitras to date--Pub. website.
Authors
- Bibliography, etc. Note
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 131-138) and index
- Control Number Identifier
- CaOOCEL
- Dewey Decimal Classification Number
- 709.2
- Dewey Decimal Edition Number
- 23
- General Note
- Issued as part of the desLibris books collection
- Geographic Area Code
- n-cn---
- ISBN
- 9781552382714 9781552385067
- LCCN
- N6549.P65
- LCCN Item number
- M33 2011eb
- Modifying agency
- CaBNVSL
- Original cataloging agency
- CaOONL
- Physical Description | Extent
- 1 electronic text (xiii, 146 p.)
- Published in
- Canada
- Publisher or Distributor Number
- CaOOCEL
- Rights
- Access restricted to authorized users and institutions
- System Control Number
- (CaBNVSL)slc00229938 (OCoLC)806255192 (CaOOCEL)433939
- System Details Note
- Mode of access: World Wide Web
- Transcribing agency
- CaOONL
Table of Contents
- Cover 1
- Inside Front Cover 2
- Series Page 4
- Copyright Page 6
- Sections (Contents) 7
- Acknowledgments 9
- Introduction 11
- Beginnings 17
- Indigenous Art and Traditions of Art History 29
- “It was the right time” 35
- Who Discovered the Americas 49
- Living in the Storm Too Long 59
- Indigena 71
- A Sacred Prayer for a Sacred Island 81
- Painting the Colonial Archive 89
- Painting the Popular Culture Archive 103
- Communities 113
- Blackboards and Writing in Paint 125
- The Artist and Spirituality 137
- Works Cited and Consulted 147
- Notes 155
- Index 157
- Back Inside Cover 163
- Back Cover 164