Protection of the Young, 1973

The Pollock Gallery, Toronto Private Collection, Toronto By descent to the present Private Collection, Maine

Lister Sinclair and Jack Pollock, “The Art of Norval Morrisseau”, Toronto, 1979, reproduced page 96

Norval Morrisseau was the celebrated founder of the Woodland School, which revitalized Anishinaabe iconography, traditionally incised on rocks and Midewiwin birchbark scrolls. A self-taught painter, printmaker, and illustrator, Morrisseau created an innovative vocabulary which was initially criticized in the Indigenous community for its disclosure of traditional spiritual knowledge. His colourful, figurative images delineated with heavy black form lines and x-ray articulations, were characteristically signed with the syllabic spelling of Copper Thunderbird, the name Morrisseau’s grandfather gave him. In "Protection of the Young", small, vulnerable birds, filled with a sense of anxiety, cling tightly to the back of the revered Thunderbird. They seek refuge from a menacing serpent that threatens to consume their eggs. With powerful lightning bolts shooting from its mouth and eyes, the Thunderbird stands strong and ready to protect them. From the outset of his artistic journey, Norval Morrisseau incorporated prominent themes from both Anishinaabe culture and Christianity into his work. However, in the mid-1970s, he began to explore a more personal and blended spiritual perspective. During this transformative phase, Morrisseau maintained his collaboration with art dealer Jack Pollock. It was through Pollock's assistant, Eva Quan, that he was introduced to the spiritual movement known as Eckankar. This movement integrates various Eastern spiritual traditions from India and China, and Morrisseau found particular resonance with two key elements: astral travel and the concept of spiritual light.