MHC Library Guides: Indigenous Education: Indigenous Arts &amp; Culture

Indigenous Arts & Culture

"Indigenous Art encompasses practices outside the Eurocentric traditions of artistic creation and categorization, as well as engagement with all major movements in art today. Indigenous art comes out of living cultures, making it highly dynamic and changing over time" (Art Gallery of Ontario, n.d.). Having said that, "many scholars have argued that Canadian art galleries have poorly represented First Nations art, particularly objects prior to the mid-twentieth century. Canadian art galleries have, in fact, long been dominated by an art/artifact binary, where only European art is considered art, to the exclusion of artworks by non-European Canadians. Under such ideologies, First Nations works have not been considered artworks and instead have been located exclusively in anthropological museums" (Nakamura, 2012).

Questions to explore:

What are the key features of Indigenous art?
What are the different functions of Indigenous music?

Image: Daphne Odjig, The Embrace, 1975, McMichael Canadian Art Collection

Featured Resources

Canadian indigenous literature and art : decolonizing education, culture, and society by Carol A. Mullen
Publication Date: 2020
Five Little Indians by Michelle Good
Call Number: PS8613.O62 F58 2020
Publication Date: 2020
Green Grass, Running Water by Thomas King
Call Number: PS8571 .I52 G73 2007
Publication Date: 1993
Noopiming : the cure for white ladies by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
Call Number: PR9199.4.S5485 N66 2020
Publication Date: 2020
Self-Determined Stories by Mandy Suhr-Sytsma
Publication Date: 2018-11-01

Mohawk Girls
Mohawk Girls is a half-hour dramatic comedy about four young women figuring out how to be Mohawk in the 21st century.
Trickster
Jared is only sixteen but feels like he is the one who must stabilize his family's life. He puzzles over why his maternal grandmother has never liked him, why she says he's the son of a trickster, that he isn't human.
Song of Eskasoni
Eskasoni is the home of celebrated Mi’kmaq poet Rita Joe. This Cape Breton village is enjoying a revival of Indigenous traditions and spirituality which inspires much of Rita Joe's writing. For twenty years her poetry and her presence have touched thousands with dignity. This video is a celebration of the spiritual pride of the Mi’kmaq as embodied in Rita Joe's writings and her life.
How People Got Fire
This introspective short animation takes place In the village of Carcross, in the Tagish First Nation. Neighbourhood pillar Grandma Kay tell the local children the tale of how Crow brought fire to people. As the story unfolds, we also meet 12-year-old Tish, an introspective, talented girl who feels drawn to the elder. Here, past and present blend, myth and reality meet, and the metaphor of fire infuses all in a location that lies at the heart of this Native community’s spiritual and cultural memory.

Indian & Cowboy Podcasts
Member-supported indigenous podcast network rooted firmly at the intersection between digital media, podcasting and indigenous storytelling. Listen through iTunes, Spotify, or web browser.
The Historical Natives
The Historical Natives is a horror-themed podcast that covers Native American history, culture, language, and folklore. Founded by a sibling duo wanting to learn more about their culture, they create digital art and short stories to accompany their researched information.
Reclaimed
Reclaimed is a weekly series on CBC Radio that explores the many worlds of contemporary Indigenous music from traditional songs and acoustic sounds to Native hip-hop, R&B, and the dancefloor-filling beats of electric powwow.
The Secret Life of Canada: You should know the Indian Film Crew
In the late 60s the National Film Board decided it was time that First Nations got to be behind the camera and in charge of how they were seen. Although short lived, the Indian Film Crew would create films that changed how the NFB operated, as well as the face of Indigenous filmmaking in this country.
A Tribe Called Geek
Describing themselves as "Indigenerdity for the geeks at the Powwow," A Tribe Called Geek talks everything from Star Wars to the survival of the First Voices festival. They cover video games, Indig-geek art, and Indigenous superheroes.

Revolutions Per Minute: Indigenous Music Culture
Revolutions Per Minute is a global new music platform, record label, and boutique agency dedicated to discovering the most talented Indigenous musicians from across Turtle Island and around the world.
Indigenous Arts Collective of Canada
In taking inspiration from the Haudenosaunee Seventh Generation Principle, the Indigenous Arts Collective of Canada was founded in 2012 to preserve and revitalize endangered Indigenous art forms and enrich lives through Indigenous arts and culture. In using our knowledge from Ancestors and Elders, we are actively practicing and teaching in safe and inclusive spaces. The IACC engages, [re]connects and empowers Indigenous women by promoting the transfer and conservation of cultural knowledge; securing the capacity for the next generations to retain and cultivate intrinsic cultural connections.
AGO: The Indigenous Collection
Indigenous art at the AGO currently includes works from the First Peoples of North America, namely First Nations, Inuit, and Metis. The collection also includes global Indigenous Art from Africa, Australia, and the Torres Strait Islands. Indigenous Art is the oldest in the world and our collections reflect recent and historical practices and the continuities in between.
National Gallery of Canada: Indigenous Art
Indigenous Art at the National Gallery of Canada includes works from Aboriginal Peoples of Canada as well as art from indigenous peoples around the globe

Indigenous Hip-Hop
Powerful stories told through powerful sounds. Hear: A Tribe Called Red, Drezus, City Natives, JB The First Lady, Mob Bounce and more!
Reclaimed
Reclaimed explores the many worlds of Indigenous Music. Traditional songs. Acoustic Sounds. Hip hop, R&B, electric powwow and everything in between. Hear A Tribe Called Red, Lido Pimienta, Tanya Tagaq, Wolf Saga and more!
Round Dance
From the heart of the Prairies, out across Turtle Island, discover songs to honour the round dance—a social and ceremonial time to get together and dance for life, love, and healing. Hear songs and roundys from Young Spirit, Blackstone, Big Bear, Randy Wood, Randall Paskemin, Harvey Dreaver, and much more. So, circle up, join hands, and follow the direction of the sun around the drummers and singers. Aho!

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline
Call Number: PZ7.D54 Mar 2017
Publication Date: 2017
Oral traditions and storytelling by Anita Yasuda.
Call Number: 398.2089 Yas
Publication Date: 2018
The Sharing Circle by Theresa Meuse; Arthur A. Stevens (Illustrator)
Call Number: PS 8576 E887 S52 2003
Publication Date: 2003-01-05
Symbolism in Indigenous arts and cultures by Erin Nicks
Call Number: 704.03 .Nic
ISBN: 9781773086064
Publication Date: 2020

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