On 28 October, the MacKenzie will open a brand-new exhibition, a highly anticipated retrospective reflecting on the four-decade long career of Northern Plains contemporary art matriarch, Faye HeavyShield. Featuring the works of this nationally renowned artist, this exhibition will highlight her incredible contribution to local, North American, and Indigenous art history. 

The Art of Faye HeavyShield, curated by Curatorial Fellow, Felicia Gay, will feature a variety of art mediums employing HeavyShield’s narrative driven aesthetic and minimalist style. 

“I feel incredibly honoured to curate Faye HeavyShield’s first retrospective,” states Felicia Gay Curatorial Fellow at the MacKenzie. “Her work demands a relational approach with a shared understanding between us as Indigenous women. For the first time, folks will have the opportunity to experience the power and expanse of her art here in Saskatchewan.” 

For nearly forty years, artist Faye HeavyShield has inspired audiences with work that is connected culturally to her experience as a Blackfoot woman from the Kainai (Blood) Nation. Over this time, she has imparted an important legacy to Indigenous artists on the Northern Plains through an approach emphasizing relationality to land and community, an aesthetics of humility, and a poetic and visual marking of the Blackfoot language. The Art of Faye HeavyShield is a collaborative reflection between HeavyShield and curator Felicia Gay on her practice as an artist, as well as her indelible contributions to North American and Indigenous art history. 

About the Artist

Born in 1953 at Stand Off, in the Blood Reserve, Alberta, Faye HeavyShield is a member of the Blackfoot Confederacy from the Kainai (Blood) Nation in the foothills of Southern Alberta. Studying at the Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary, Alberta, HeavyShield has been highlighted, in both solo and group exhibitions, at galleries across Canada including the Contemporary Art Gallery (Vancouver, BC), Gallery Connexion (Fredericton, NB), The Power Plant (Toronto, ON), and the Southern Alberta Art Gallery. Faye’s work is found in permanent collections of the National Art Gallery of Canada, McMichael Museum, Alberta Foundation of Art, Glenbow Museum (Calgary, AB), Heard Museum (Phoenix, AZ), MacKenzie Art Gallery (Regina, SK) and the Kelowna Art Gallery (Kelowna, BC). HeavyShield was an Eiteljorg Fellowship artist in 2009 and a 2021 recipient of the Lt. Governor General of Alberta Award-Visual Arts. 

Opening Reception 

On Friday, 28 October, from 7 – 10:30 PM, visitors are welcome to join the MacKenzie Art Gallery for the opening reception for The Art of Faye HeavyShield with Free Admission, sponsored by Rawlco Radio. Artist Faye HeavyShield will be in conversation with curator Felicia Gay, and Kristy Trinier who has worked with HeavyShield during her time at the Gallery of Southern Alberta.  Together they will be discussing the works, process and themes in the exhibition. Reception in Craft Services in Café by Crave to follow.

 

MEDIA CONTACT 

Katie Wilson 

Communications Coordinator 

MacKenzie Art Gallery 

Kwilson@mackenzie.art 

(306)-584-4250 ext. 4271 

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