Wanda Nanibush set to bring AGO's Canadian and Indigenous art into the future

WandaNanibushis poisedto bring freshIndigenous art tothe Art Gallery of Ontario, thanks to herinaugural position as assistant curator forCanadian and Indigenous art.

"Art is our great imagining. Politics does what is here, concrete,in front of us. Art takes us in to the future."

Nanibushis Anishinaabe-kwe,fromBeausoleilFirst Nation. She completed a master'sdegree in Visual Studies from the University ofToronto, while holding other roles as awriter, educator, filmmaker and activist.She hadworked as a guest curator at the AGO before being chosen for thisunique position.

In an interview with Metro Morning,Nanibush explained therelationship between Canadian and Indigenous art.

"It means Indigenous is the ground of Canadian. It's theland on which we operate. That means it has a specific, special role that should be independent of Canada. It shouldn't be under Canada."

"But then at the same time, Indigenous is deeply embedded inside Canada, so it should also be throughout Canada, so it signalsboth roles."

TheArtGalleryofOntariohousessomeofCanada'smostrenownedartistsandhastraditionallyshowcasedIndigenousart in achronological layout.

With more and moreconversations risingaround thelives ofIndigenous peoplesin Canada, Nanibush is eager to update the way we see Indigenous art today.

Young,active artists play a large role in bringing Indigenous culture to the forefront.Nanibushnoticesthat the new generation ofartists meditateon their concernforthe earth.

She is inspired by the creativity of those modernartists who are "integrating contemporary art with traditional practices like Mikmaq basketry" or basket weaving.

Nanibushwas also involved in the Idle No More movement that highlightedIndigenousissues. The art she will share with visitors plays a role in continuing those political conversations.

"The art itself is reflecting on this thing with Idle No More, connected to spirituality, connected to tradition, connected to older art forms that come out of the drum and out of beadwork."

Nanibush'sfirst exhibit, which will celebrate an extensive collection of diverse Canadian and Indigenousartists from Toronto between the years1971 to 1989, will be on display at the AGO in the fall.