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Jackson Beardy was born on Garden Hill Reserve, Island Lake, Manitoba in 1944. Throughout his life, he was an artist, storyteller, teacher, consultant, and a strong advocate for Indigenous people and artists. Following tradition, at a young age, he went to live with his paternal grandmother and learned many traditional Ojibwe and Cree stories that would inspire his artistic practice in the future. After attending a residential school in Portage la Prairie which left a huge impact on him, he attended the Technical Vocational High School in Winnipeg from 1963 to 1964. He had his first exhibition at the Winnipeg Art Gallery in 1965 and then completed his formal education at the University of Manitoba in 1966. Even though his artworks were not always accepted within his community, Beardy finally found the freedom to depict the oral legends and stories that he listened to as a child into his artworks. During the 1960s and 1970s Indigenous peoples and their art were going through a time of change and ground-breaking. As a result of political changes such as getting the right to vote and being included in the Expo 67 Indigenous art started slowly getting recognition. At that time the prevailing opinion was that Indigenous art is depicting a dying culture, dealing with old legends, not being contemporary or relevant to the current issues and therefore it was seen as something belonging to the ethnographic field rather than the art field. The discussions were also about a question if this is actually art or craft and therefore should it be presented at the mainstream art galleries. In addition, issues of racial discrimination were widely spread. A distressing example is that Beardy was denied entry to the exhibition opening at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa where his works were presented. It is no surprise that Beardy would become a spokesperson for Indigenous creatives and communities from that moment onward. Beardy was a founding member of the group formed in Winnipeg called the Professional National Indian Artists Inc. in 1972, commonly known as Indian Group of Seven, along with Daphne Odjig, Alex Janvier, Norval Morrisseau, Carl Ray, Joseph Sanchez and Eddy Cobiness. As a collective, they organized exhibitions, created funding opportunities for emerging Aboriginal artists, controlled the production and marketing of their art, and developed new ways to educate the public about Indigenous art and culture. The group was also known as the Woodland School of Art since each artist conveyed their relationship to the natural world. Their contribution was instrumental in opening the doors for future First Nations artists to gain acceptance and recognition in art institutions. During the early 1980s, Beardy’s belief in protecting and supporting the rights of Indigenous artists led him to become an art advisor and cultural consultant at the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature. He also taught as a professor in the Department of Native Studies at Brandon University and at the University of Manitoba. From 1982 through 1983, Jackson Beardy was senior arts advisor to the Federal Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development in Ottawa. In 1984, Beardy returned to Winnipeg to paint a mural called Peace and Harmony for the Indigenous (Indian) Family Centre in one of the earliest mural sites in the province. Unfortunately, Beardy passed away before he could finish the project. His untimely death was the result of complications following a heart attack. The mural was completed by student artists at R.B. Russell Vocational High School, the next year. The wall painting captures Beardy’s vision of imagining a reality where humanity, nature, and the spiritual realm live in unity with one another. The Winnipeg Art Gallery held a retrospective of his work in the exhibition Jackson Beardy: A Life’s Work in 1993-94 as recognition of his contributions to art and Indigenous communities. Jackson Beardy began his interest in art at a young age, learning to draw and paint, however while attending the residential school in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba he was not allowed to draw or express his Anishinaabe background or oral traditions. After leaving the school at the age of 18, Beardy pursued an art education and studied commercial art. After graduating Beardy began to reconnect with his Ojibwe and Cree background and introduced the oral traditions that he had learned from his grandmother as well as his own research, into his art. Beardy was an artist of Woodland School which is a very pictographic style of painting full of symbolic meaning, which is part of the fabric of the culture; it includes spirits, heroes, animals, and natural elements. Woodland School remains alive and practiced to this day. As he matured as an artist, he also began exploring the balance between humans and nature, regeneration and growth and the interconnectivity of all things. His works have a recognizable graphic style featuring very precise black outlines filled with rich saturated colour. Beardy also painted on a variety of surfaces including canvas, birch bark and beaver skins. Beardy’s life and art were a quest for his self-knowledge and cultural identity. He was transferring strong oral traditions into visual imagery. Through his work and his art, he documented and revitalized the traditions and legends of the Indigenous culture and is considered one of the most important artists for the future development of Canadian Indigenous art. |
Beardy, Jackson (Canadian, 1944-1984).
Red Bear, 1979
serigraph.
Collection of the Art Gallery of Algoma; Gift of Leo Perry
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GET INSPIRED
Get Inspired by Telling Stories
Try this creative activity based on the artwork!
Jackson Beardy used his artworks to share Ojibwe and Cree oral traditions and stories and to explore how humans and nature are connected. Get inspired to turn your own stories and connections to nature into works of art!
SUPPLIES
- Pencils
- Sketching Paper
- Paint
- Canvas or Thick Paper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Think of an event or story from your own life where you connect with nature or nature is important to you and begin to write it out. Take your time to think about the important details; the places, people, even the mood. You don’t have to write out a very long story but you can focus on the important details.
- Once you’ve finished writing out your story you’ll want to start to try and bring it to life. Start by making little sketches. These sketches could be to figure out the important places or people in your story, or you can also think about the most important parts of your story.
- Using these sketches and small drawings, think about how you can take all of the important parts and people of your story and how you can tell the story in one painting. Think about how you can put all of the different pieces or people together and where you will put them that will show the most important parts of your story. You’ll also want to think about how your different subjects are interacting, what kind of colours you use to get different different feelings, and what kind of style or drawing/painting you're going to do (abstract vs. realistic).
- Sketch out your plans onto your canvas and then have fun using paint to share your stories!
Don’t forget, there are no mistakes in art! Be bold and have fun!
Share your inspired work with us!
Send us an e-mail with your name, photo of your work and the activity it was inspired by and it could be posted on our website!
Please be aware that whatever is posted is widely accessible. The AGA is not responsible for the copyright and has no control of what people will do with the posts.
Please send you submission to: [email protected]
Please be aware that whatever is posted is widely accessible. The AGA is not responsible for the copyright and has no control of what people will do with the posts.
Please send you submission to: [email protected]
