The Treaty Six Contemporary Art Festival is taking applications for Indigenous artists

Treaty Six Contemporary, in association with the Edmonton Arts Council, is pleased to announce The Treaty Six Contemporary Art Festival.

“It will be Canada’s very first all-Indigenous, multidisciplinary contemporary art festival by Indigenous people, for Indigenous people,” Treaty Six Contemporary stated.

Treaty Six Contemporary is an all-Indigenous, multidisciplinary artist collective based in Western Treaty 6 Territory with a focus on facilitating mentorship, networking, and exhibition for Indigenous artists. The Collective was founded by Jake Cardinal Jr. in late 2020.

“The Collective’s mission from day one was to facilitate promotion and exhibition for up-and-coming Indigenous artists in Treaty 6 Territory,” said the Collective’s Creative Director, Jake Cardinal Jr. “And this Festival is meant to do that.”

The event will be held in early September 2021 in Saddle Lake Cree Nation, Treaty 6 Territory. From now until June 16, the Collective is taking applications for Indigenous artists to exhibit work in the Festival.

This applies to Indigenous artists in Treaty 6 who are working in the fields of Visual Art/painting, performance art, music, and spoken word are encouraged to apply — but every artist is welcome Treaty Six Contemporary says.

“What we are looking for is quality and passion,” Treaty Six Contemporary said.

This includes both established and emerging artists; so long as you identify as an artist, regardless of earnings or notoriety you can take part in the festival Treaty Six Contemporary says.

“We need Indigenous people in management positions. We need Indigenous people running the show. We need Indigenous voices amplifying other Indigenous voices. If we can achieve what we set out to do, the name Treaty 6 Contemporary will be featured in every Canadian art history book for many years to come,” Cardinal said. “University students will be tested on what we’re about to do.”

“The landscape of Canadian Art is going to change for the better,” Cardinal added.

The collective is also offering a mentorship program for emerging indigenous artists — which is anyone who has not exhibited work in a professional setting. Successful mentorship applicants will learn from and collaborate with industry professionals in the fields of visual art, performance art, music, or spoken-word to create a brand-new project made specifically for the festival. Each Emerging artist in the program will be paid to cover the costs of their creation; they will have travel covered for them for the festival; and will have a designated spot in the artist lineup.

For more information on how to apply for the exhibition, visit treatysixcontemporary.com

 Arthur@lakelandconnect.thedev.ca