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Activities by artist

This work is under the following license:

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

CC BY-NC-SA

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lessLIE

lessLIE is of Cowichan, Penalakut and Equimalt Nations and of Irish, Italian, and French heritage. He began learning Coast Salish art during his undergraduate degree in First Nations Studies from Malaspina College. He often uses visual punning in his art which is related to his background in English literature.

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  • What is visual punning, described by the artist lessLIE? Try to create your own visual pun – this does not need to be an elaborate drawing, try sketching out your idea or describing your idea in words.

  • lessLIE describes his cultural reality as grounded in a contemporary Coast Salish perspective that still draws on tradition. While this is in his work as an artist, reflect on what your cultural reality is as a student.

  • lessLIE discusses Coast Salish ownership and appropriation of Indigenous cultures. What is cultural appropriation? Reflect on how lessLIE’s piece tHEIRS examines cultural appropriation.

  • Reflect on what lessLIE describes when discussing art as a commodity, but also an educational piece. What are your thoughts on this?

  • What did you learn about Coast Salish Spindle Whorls from lessLIE?

  • How does lessLIE describe reconciliation? Reflect on your previous understanding of reconciliation, and how it has changed after viewing this video.

  • In what ways does lessLIE describe art as literacy?

  • What does lessLIE say about the written language? How does this relate to the language in historic treaties?

  • lessLIE explains how he uses his art as a way to teach people about Coast Salish culture. What are 2-3 things you learned from his pieces shown in the recorded conversation?

Maynard Johnny Jr.

Maynard Johnny Jr. is a Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw self-taught artist, who has been practicing for over thirty years. In his art, he often addresses First Nations identity, decolonization, and colonialism. 

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  • Maynard Johnny Jr. explains that art allows people to feel comfortable enough to have an uncomfortable conversation. Do you agree with this? Why or why not?

  • What does Maynard Johnny Jr. have to say about the oppression of Indigenous peoples? Write a reflection on what you have learned from his conversation.

  • Maynard Johnny Jr. discusses the importance of kinship ties, and how land is one of these ties. As a practice to engage in recognizing land as a relation, identify the Indigenous territories you currently occupy, and the Indigenous territories of where you are from if they are different.

  • What does Maynard Johnny Jr. mean when he discusses the Coast Salish art renaissance? What does this mean to you?

  • Maynard Johnny Jr. discusses the reciprocity of mentorship, and how he has learned things from his mentees as much as he has taught them. At the end of term, reflect and honour what you have learned from your students. Have one cue card for each student with one thing you learned from them over the course of the class. Give each student a cue card and have them write one thing they learned from you anonymously or signed depending on their preference.

  • Maynard Johnny Jr. explains how he uses his art as a way to teach people about Coast Salish culture. What are 2-3 things you learned from his pieces shown in the recorded conversation?

  • Maynard Johnny Jr. discusses art markets and the boundaries of not selling traditional pieces or commodifying Coast Salish culture. What is the best way to determine these boundaries?

  • Reflect on what Maynard Johnny Jr. describes when discussing art markets and the concern about selling your culture. What do you think of this?

Dylan Thomas

Dylan Thomas is a Coast Salish artist of Lyackson and Snuneymuxw First Nations, whose influences include Buddhism, and Coast Salish art practices like wood and stone carving.

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  • Identify the benefits of oral languages which Dylan Thomas describes. Can you think of others?

  • What elements indicate Coast Salish art, as described by Dylan Thomas?

  • What is a fractal, as described by Dylan Thomas? How does this alter your perception of his piece Night and Day mentioned in the recorded conversation?

  • What are the aesthetics of geometry, as mentioned by Dylan Thomas? Create an image using rotation symmetry, multi-axis symmetry or radial symmetry.

  • What did you learn about Coast Salish Spindle Whorls from Dylan Thomas?

  • Dylan Thomas discusses the differences between Coast Salish art and Northern Indigenous art. What are 2-3 things that stood out to you?

  • What does Dylan Thomas mean when he discusses the Coast Salish art renaissance? What does this mean to you?

  • Dylan Thomas mentions using museum archives as a source of inspiration, while also reflecting on their history of stealing Indigenous artifacts. Write or draw a reflection of what this makes you feel/think.

lessLIE
Maynard Johnny Jr.
Dylan Thomas
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