Professional Native Indian Artists Incorporated
March 10 to April 4, 2020Gallery Gevik is pleased to present an exhibition of visionary paintings by the 7 trailblazing members of the Professional Native Indian Artists Incorporated. This Group of Seven was a ground-breaking cultural and political entity that self-organized in 1975 to demand recognition as professional, contemporary artists and stimulated a new way of thinking about First Nations people and their art.
Mother Bird, Chick & Fish, c. 1970
ink and acrylic on paper, 18.25" x 23.5" (SOLD)Fishing on a Prehistoric Lake, 1973
ink and acrylic wash on paperboard, 22" × 28" (SOLD)Into the Big Picture (Apple Series), 1989 (SOLD)
acrylic on canvas, 48" × 36" (SOLD)The Artist as Jesus Christ, c. 1966 (SOLD)
acrylic on kraft paper, 62.5" x 31.5" (SOLD)In 1971, Daphne Odjig’s print shop and gallery, Odjig Indian Prints of Canada,had become a gathering place in Winnipeg for spirited artistic and political discussion. She, along with artists Jackson Beardy, Eddy Cobiness, and Joseph Sanchez regularly met to talk about their professional aspirations, their experiences as outsiders in the Canadian gallery establishment, and their encounters with institutional barriers. The general attitude in Canada at the time was that Indigenous art consisted primarily of handicrafts and ethnographic artifacts and should be most appropriately displayed in a natural history museum. They discussed strategies for bringing about change and to this end they invited other Indigenous artists across the country to join in the quest for self-determination and professional advancement. Odjig’s courage and determination were huge motivating factors and three additional artists, Alex Janvier from Alberta, and Carl Ray and Norval Morrisseau from Ontario, responded to the call. The seven members formalized their association in 1972 as Professional Native Indian Artists Inc. Shortly after, following a number of successful professional group exhibitions of their work, they were dubbed the Indian Group of Seven by the Winnipeg Free Press.