ART EXHIBIT
Littlefield supports and highlights works from talented local artists. Exhibits are on display for a limited time.
100% of the art sales proceeds goes to the artist.
JULIE FRANCELLA Ogichida Waawaashkeshi’kwe (Brave Deer Woman)
Mindimooyenh – Feminine and Fierce Women
When I think of women I know, those who have had to fight and struggle for a voice in this world, I think of many descriptors. Centuries of conditioning have left us believing that the word fierce is not one of them. In my culture, Ojibwe women are mindimooyenh or “one who holds things together.” Fierce is the most prominent descriptor for the women who have walked through life with me, side-by-side, heart-by-heart. These women are also caring,
loving, courageous, generous, wise, thoughtful, loyal, beautiful, and gentle.
They are also a force to be reckoned with.
Fierce: bold, ardent, passionate, powerful, relentless, strong.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Julie Francella Ogichida Waawaashkeshi’kwe (Brave Deer Woman) is a multi-disciplinary First Nations Anishinaabe (Ojibway) artist / illustrator and registered citizen of the Métis Nation of Ontario. Julie is represented by Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency of New York City (Partnered with Salky Literary Management). She also works for the First Nations University of Canada.
Ogichida Waawaashkeshi’kwe is the Ojibway (Chippewa) name given to her by her First Nation Elders. It means Brave Deer Woman.
Creative endeavors have always been her passion. Her work speaks to the relationship between Indigenous people and the reality of the world they inhabit. She comments on the boundaries humans create (borders, reservations) juxtaposed with nature’s natural boundaries (airflow, water-flow).
Her message often speaks to the idea that we are all connected. She is interested in how indigenous and non-indigenous people’s interpretations of her work differ, specifically regarding the treatment of land and nature: on the one hand, respected and imbued with spiritual qualities and, on the other, looked at as a resource. Without judgement, she says, humans can feel that all things are ultimately intertwined.
This exhibition will be at littlefield through March 2023 and is made possible with the generous support of The Canada Council for the Arts.
Instagram @juliefrancella
Twitter @juliefrancella
Website www.juliefrancella.com