Siblings , 1983

Mayberry Fine Art, Winnipeg Private Collection, WInnipeg

“Celebrating Canadian Women Artists”, Mayberry Fine Art, 1-18 March 2023

Daphne Odjig was born in Wikwemikong on Manitoulin Island, Ontario. Her grandfather Jonas Odjig, a stone carver and storyteller, was an early artistic influence. At the age of 13, Odjig was forced to withdraw from school due to illness, and her grandfather instructed her in drawing, carving and the oral traditions of her family. Odjig became a key figure among the movement of Indigenous artists that gradually gained recognition in the Canadian art world of the 1970s. In 1973, she co-founded the Professional Native Indian Artists Association (colloquially called the “Indian Group of Seven”). The following year, she opened the Warehouse Gallery in Winnipeg. Odjig also taught at the Manitou Arts Foundation on Schrieber Island in Georgian Bay. These varied projects helped place Odjig at the forefront of cultural activity supporting and promoting Indigenous visual artists during a crucial period. “Siblings” demonstrates Odjig’s idiosyncratic mature style. Odjig’s simplified figures are portrayed with the use flowing lines and flat planes of colour. The round forms in the background envelope the figures, emphasizing their familial unity. Bold red lines strike an energizing contrast with the blue and earthy tones. With her distinct and personal aesthetic, Odjig powerfully incorporated her Odawa-Potawatomi culture and histories into the visual culture of Canadian art.