Brian Francis
Author, Poet, Photographer, Director-Producer Brian Francis of Elsipogtog First Nation is painting his visions, dream images that come to him and he is compelled to embody them with paint. Well known as an international award winning filmmaker and musical entrepreneur, he has produced, directed and has written over 70 award winning documentaries. Most recently Brian released his first book, Between Two Worlds- Spiritual Writings and Photographs.
“I think my work in The Sacred Space goes beyond being Indigenous or non-Indigenous. It goes deeper into the heart of who
we all are as people. It goes beyond historical and political rhetoric, it isn’t about Indigenous rights or Native politics. My artwork serves
to unite ancient souls that dwell within all of us that oftentimes get bogged down by daily stresses of life, regardless of who we are as people. The ancestorial space that is occupied by the ones who were here before us ,It is up to us to acknowledge and honour them and it is where we must seek guidance whilst here in this plane. The Sacred Space is within our hearts a place we often forget to look when we seek answer. Perhaps the lesson in that may be that we may be afraid of what it is we will find when we look deep within the confines of our souls. But reality is , these are the answers we need.”
Tara Francis
“My work is a form of prayer, and it’s healing for me just in the very act of doing it,” says Tara Francis, a contemporary Mi’kmaw artist from the Elsipogtog First Nation, now based in Shediac, N.B.
“A youthful portrait taken from a black and white photo of my Maternal Grandmother Lucretia McLaughlin. This is one of two portraits I have created, the first being a portrait of my Paternal Grandmother Louise Francis. (which is now part of the Beaverbrook Art Gallery’s permanent collection) The stories of these women’s lives and the legacy of their dedication and nurturing kindness to their families and communities are truly an inspiration.
I grew up next door to my Granny Lucretia and it was her support and encouragement that led me to pursue a career in art. These portraits are part of a series entitled That Which has Shaped me. Made possible in part by a Creation Grant from ArtsNB.
Starlit Simon
Starlit Simon is Mi’kmaw from Elsipogtog First Nation and a full-time PhD candidate at the University of New Brunswick in the Faculty of Education. She can often be found highway hunting for porcupine roadkill where she harvests the porcupine quills to create her art. “As I continue through the process of research and academia, I am often grappling with myself, my Indigenous world view, my Mi’kmaq language, and with the western world view and the English language. It often takes me a significant amount of time to operate and understand how to walk, work and communicate in the western world, because when I do, I abandon who I am at my core, a Mi’kmaq woman from Elsipogtog [The River of Fire]. This art piece is symbolic of that internal struggle that many Indigenous scholars can attest to also feeling, not just in their graduate studies but throughout their undergrads and in high schools as well. This piece is a reminder that there is a way to apply two eyed seeing as is the term that was in our language and world view from very long ago. Where you walk with one foot in both worlds. “, Starlit Simon.
