This spring and summer, Délı̨nę First Nations artist and printmaker Laura Grier will mentor Dana Belcourt, a twenty-two-year-old Métis artist based in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (so-called Edmonton).
View insights into their one-on-one mentorship sessions by clicking through the slides below, and check back soon for more details about the pairing's public programming.
Dana Belcourt is a twenty-two-year-old Métis artist based in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (so-called Edmonton). Through paintings, zines, and media-based art forms, her work deals with the themes of love and being someone of mixed Indigenous and European ancestry. She explores many art mediums to showcase an intensive writing practice that explores the intimacy of her relationship with herself and love.
Her main focuses are producing and self-publishing zines featuring poetry and art (mainly watercolour paintings), of which she has produced seventeen. Another focus is painting murals showcasing stories of the city and has so far collaborated on eight murals. She graduated from MacEwan University’s Fine Arts Diploma program in April 2021 and will finish her BFA at Emily Carr.
Laura Grier is a Délı̨nę First Nations artist and printmaker, born in Sombaké (Yellowknife), and raised in Alberta. Through traditional print mediums, they instrumentalize the power of the handmade to reflect political sociology, culture, environmentalism, and Indigeneity. Responding to lived experiences of being an urban displaced Dene woman through print, Laura’s work is also inspired by the dynamism of Indigenous art practices, using printmaking as a tool for resistance, refusal, and inherent Bets’ı̨nę́.
They hold a BFA from NSCADU (K’jipuktuk) and an MFA from OCAD University (Tkaronto). They have exhibited at Xpace Cultural Centre, Harcourt House, DC3 Art Projects, SNAP Gallery, and ArtsPlace. Laura received grants and awards for their work, including Indigenous project grants from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts and the Canada Council for the Arts, and was the 2018 RISE Emerging Artist recipient. They currently reside in Tkaronto.
Website: lauragrierart.com
