At the Front of the Line: Poundmaker

Mixed media artist Jane Ash Poitras was born in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta in 1951. Poitras’ biological mother died when she was six years old and she was raised by her adoptive mother in a German Roman Catholic household in Edmonton. She earned first a degree in microbiology, followed by a second degree in printmaking, from the University of Alberta. She then earned a Master of Fine Arts (painting and sculpture focus) from Columbia University in New York. Poitras is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts, and an in-demand lecturer at Universities world-wide. Poitras is the recipient of numerous awards including the Alberta Centennial Medal, the University of Alberta Alumni Award of Excellence, and the 2006 national Aboriginal Achievement Award for Arts and Culture. Poitras’ work frequently makes use of references to First Nations and European art history and combines layers of photography, painted images, and text to create complex works that address issues of personal and collective identities, histories, and stories. In early adulthood Poitras sought out her Cree/Dene heritage. According to a 2010 press release from the Royal Ontario Museum (http://www.rom.on.ca/en/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/jane-ash-poitras-new-acquisitions-of-contemporary-first-nations-art Accessed January 13, 2017) Poitras “meets regularly with Elders from many Native communities to hear their stories and to learn from them. She travels often, allowing her to observe and partake in the rituals of various Native cultures. By doing so, she brings a very humanist approach to her work. She isn’t just trying to give information – rather her work is about sharing knowledge. Her visual presentation of First Nations has had a tremendous impact on Canadian art.” ARTIST INFO: Canada House Gallery: http://www.canadahouse.com/Artists/Jane_Ash_Poitras.asp (Accessed February 26, 2017)