Opening reception:
Friday, July 6 | 7:30 pm
At the age of 15, Moses’ family clan relocated with 5 other families and settled the community of Nibinamik (Summer Beaver, ON) where he focused on his art full-time. He directed his energy towards youth and children, providing OAC-funded art workshops to elementary students both in northern First Nation communities and non-Indigenous schools across southern Ontario. His workshops served as a means of teaching and sharing the significance of Indigenous culture and spirituality to create understanding and acceptance in the younger generation.
He was primarily self-taught, constantly experimenting with different techniques and media. His tools of preference became acrylic on canvas, but he also used watercolour, ink, pastels, and oils.
Moses moved south from Nibinamik to Thunder Bay in 2012, where he worked on his art intermittently and participated in several small local artisan gatherings and collectives. During this time, he experienced a resurgence of artistic inspiration before his sudden untimely death in February, 2017 at the age of 56.
Moses Amik (“Beaver”) was born in Lansdowne House, Ontario in 1960, and grew up on the trap line in his family’s traditional territory approximately 500 km north of Lake Superior. As a child, he began creating images using charcoal on the cardboard that lined the interior of his family’s cabin. His father and uncle, recognizing his talent, encouraged his creativity, suggesting he use drawing and painting as a vehicle for sharing his personal experiences and wider Indigenous worldview with a world that was predominantly separate from the rest of society.