Alex Simeon Janvier, LL.D (; born February 28, 1935) is a

First Nation Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

artist in Canada. As a member of the commonly referred to " Indian Group of Seven", Janvier is a pioneer of contemporary Canadian Aboriginal art in Canada.

Career

Alex Janvier was born on Le Goff Reserve,

Cold Lake First Nations The Cold Lake First Nations is a First Nations band government. This band is the governing body for people descended from several different historic groups, hence the plural, ''nations'', used in the band's name. In August 2019, there were 2,96 ...

, northern

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, on February 28, 1935 of

Dene Suline Chipewyan or Denesuline (ethnonym: ), often simply called Dene, is the language spoken by the Chipewyan people of northwestern Canada. It is categorized as part of the Northern Athabaskan languages, Northern Athabaskan language family. Dënës ...

and

Saulteaux The Saulteaux (pronounced , or in imitation of the French pronunciation , also written Salteaux, Saulteau and other variants), otherwise known as the Plains Ojibwe, are a First Nations band government in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, A ...

descent. At the age of eight, he was sent to the Blue Quills

Indian residential school In Canada, the Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by Christian churches. The school sys ...

near St. Paul, Alberta, where the principal recognized his innate artistic talent and encouraged him in his art."Artist Alex Janvier's work on display at National Gallery"
''Calgary Herald'', Peter Robb: November 26, 2016 Alex Janvier received formal art training from the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art in Calgary (now the

Alberta University of the Arts The Alberta University of the Arts (AUArts) is a public art university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The university is a co-educational institution that operates four academic schools. The institution originated from the art departme ...

) and graduated with honours in 1960. He was one of the first Canadian First Nations artists to train in a professional art school. Immediately after graduation, Janvier took up an opportunity to instruct art at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...

. In 1966, the federal

Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

commissioned him to produce 80 paintings. He helped bring together a group of artists for the Indians of Canada Pavilion at

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

, among them

Norval Morrisseau Norval Morrisseau (March 14, 1932 – December 4, 2007), also known as Copper Thunderbird, was an Indigenous Canadian artist from the Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation. Known as the "Picasso of the North", Morrisseau created works depic ...

and

Bill Reid William Ronald Reid Jr. (12 January 1920 – 13 March 1998) (Haida) was a Canadian artist whose works include jewelry, sculpture, screen-printing, and paintings. Producing over one thousand original works during his fifty-year career, Reid ...

. Janvier currently runs Janvier Gallery in

Cold Lake, Alberta Cold Lake is a city in northeastern Alberta, Canada and is named after the lake nearby. Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake (CFB Cold Lake) is situated within the city's outer limits. History Cold Lake was first recorded on a 1790 map, by the nam ...

, with his family."Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts: Announcement of winners"
Mar 25, 2008 Canadian Council for the Arts] In 2016, a

retrospective exhibition A retrospective (from Latin ''retrospectare'', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in medicine, software development, popu ...

of his work opened at the

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the ...

. Also, in 2016 Janvier's large mosaic ''Tsa Tsa Ke Kʼe'' (''Iron Foot Place'') was installed at

Rogers Place Rogers Place is a multi-use indoor arena in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Construction started in March 2014, and the building officially opened on September 8, 2016. The arena has a seating capacity of 18,500 as a hockey venue and 20,734 as a conce ...

in Edmonton.

Style

Alex Janvier, the 'first Canadian native modernist,' has created a unique style of modernist abstraction, his own "visual language," informed by the rich cultural and spiritual traditions and heritage of the Dene in northern Alberta. His abstract style is particularly suited to large-scale works. He makes magic arts and three-dimensional works. Two of his stylistic influences among

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

artists are

Paul Klee Paul Klee (; 18 December 1879 – 29 June 1940) was a Swiss-born German artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented ...

and

Wassily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky (; rus, Василий Васильевич Кандинский, Vasiliy Vasilyevich Kandinskiy, vɐˈsʲilʲɪj vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ kɐnʲˈdʲinskʲɪj; – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter a ...

, while among Native traditions he is particularly inspired by the abstract patterns of traditional hide-painting,

beadwork Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another by stringing them onto a thread or thin wire with a sewing or beading needle or sewing them to cloth. Beads are produced in a diverse range of materials, shapes, and sizes, and vary b ...

and

quillwork Quillwork is a form of textile embellishment traditionally practiced by Indigenous peoples of North America that employs the quills of porcupines as an aesthetic element. Quills from bird feathers were also occasionally used in quillwork. Histor ...

Politics

Alex Janvier signed his paintings with his treaty number from 1966 to 1977 to protest government policies against Aboriginal people.National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation
He also makes references to treaty language in the "ironic and allusive" titles of his art, such as "Sun Shines, Grass Grows, Rivers Flow", grounding his abstract art in political conflicts.

''Morning Star''

In 1993 a large abstract painting by Janvier, ''Morning Star'', was installed at the river end of the Grand Hall of the

Canadian Museum of History The Canadian Museum of History (french: Musée canadien de l’histoire) is a national museum on anthropology, Canadian history, cultural studies, and ethnology in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The purpose of the museum is to promote the heritage ...

, where a seven-storey-high dome rises above the granite floor. Janvier created the painting with the assistance of his son Dean, between June and September. Janvier titled the work ''Morning Star'' in reference to the star's use as a direction-finder. He planned the four areas of colour in the outside ring to represent periods in Native history: yellow, for early history in harmony with nature; blue, for the changes brought about by contact with European civilization; red, for revival and optimism; and white for reconciliation and a return to harmony.

Awards

* 2018 Member of the

Alberta Order of Excellence The Alberta Order of Excellence (french: Ordre d'excellence de l'Alberta) is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Alberta. Instituted in 1979 when Lieutenant Governor Frank C. Lynch-Staunton granted royal assent to the Alberta O ...

* 2008 Mairon Nicoll Visual Art Award, Alberta Foundation for the Arts * 2008 University of Calgary honorary degree, Doctor of Laws * 2008

Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts The Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts are annual awards for achievements in visual and media arts in Canada. Up to eight awards are presented annually with the prize amount is $25,000 Created in 2000 by then Governor General Adrie ...

* 2008 University of Alberta honorary degree (Doctor of Laws) * 2007 Member of the Order of Canada. * 2005 Centennial Medal for outstanding service to the people and province of Alberta. * 2002 National Aboriginal Achievement Award * 2001 Tribal Chiefs Institute Lifetime Achievement Award. * 2001 Cold Lake First Nations Lifetime Achievement Award. * 1992 Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts. * 1985 Canada/China Cross Cultural Exchange Tour because he made magic and three-dimensional arts

Films and television

* 2005 CBC ''ArtSpot'' * 2004 ''The Sharing Circle'', segment featuring Alex Janvier. * 1991 ''Investment in Art'', Alberta Art Foundation, Edmonton, Alberta. * 1991 ''Echo Des Songes'', Arthur Lamothe, Montreal, Quebec. * 1984 ''Seeing It Our Way: Alex Janvier'', CBC Edmonton. * 1983 ''Our Native Land: Alex Janvier'', CBC/CBO. * 1973 ''Canadian Indian Canvas'', Henning Jacobsen Productions, Toronto, Ontario. * 1973 ''Colours of Pride'', National Film Board of Canada. * 1973 ''Alex Janvier: The Native Artist'', Alberta Native Communications Society.

Education

* 2019 Honorary MFA,

, Calgary, Alberta. * 1960 Fine Arts Diploma, Alberta College of Art, Calgary, Alberta.

Collections

* Alberta Art Foundation, Government of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta * Alberta Indian Arts and Crafts Society, Edmonton, Alberta * AMACO Canada Ltd., Calgary, Alberta * Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta * The Late Helen E. Band Collection, Toronto, Ontario * The Saidye and Samuel Bronfman Memorial Collection, Montreal, Quebec * The Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa * Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau, Quebec * Cinader Collection, Toronto, Ontario * Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Ottawa, Ontario * Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Ottawa, Ontario * City of Edmonton, Edmonton, Alberta * Edmonton Public Schools Board, Edmonton, Alberta * Esso Oil Resources, Calgary, Alberta * Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta * Government of Alberta, Edmonton * Gulf Oil Resources, Calgary, Alberta * McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinberg, Ontario * Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan *

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...

, Montreal, Quebec * National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario * The Late Lester B. Pearson Collection, Ottawa, Ontario * Petro-Canada, Calgary, Alberta * Shell Canada, Calgary, Alberta *

Thunder Bay Art Gallery The Thunder Bay Art Gallery is Northern Ontario's largest art gallery specializing in the work of contemporary Indigenous artists. It is located on the campus of Confederation College in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. The Thunder Bay Art Gallery is ...

, Thunder Bay, Ontario * Toronto Dominion Bank, Toronto, Ontario *

Winnipeg Art Gallery The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) is an art museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Its permanent collection includes over 24,000 works from Canadian, Indigenous Canadian, and international artists. The museum also holds the world's largest collect ...

, Winnipeg, Manitoba

References

External links

Alex Janvier's Official Website

Seventh Generation Gallery
in the Netherlands, Europe, including art of Alex Janvier.
''Morning Star - Gambeh Then’'' virtual exhibition
from Canadian Museum of History. {{DEFAULTSORT:Janvier, Alex 1935 births Living people 20th-century First Nations people 21st-century First Nations people Artists from Alberta First Nations painters Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts winners Indspire Awards Members of the Alberta Order of Excellence Members of the Order of Canada Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts Saulteaux people