Bear Mother Postcard by Shoshannah Greene

NATIVE NORTHWEST ART BY INDIGENOUS ARTISTS

Statement of Respect and Authenticity

We believe that Indigenous artists should be treated fairly and with respect. Authenticity of art, design, and culture is the foundation of our mission of building everyday connection to Indigenous cultures.

Native Northwest products are guided by the following five principles:

• 100% of the art featured on every Native Northwest product is designed by Indigenous artists

• All artists have provided consent and contractual permission for their art to be featured on Native Northwest products

• Artist names are acknowledged on all product packaging

• Cultural traditions are honoured by acknowledging cultural affiliation on product packaging

• Artists are paid in fees and royalties

SGidGang.Xaal / Shoshannah Greene was born and raised on Haida Gwaii. She is a member of the St’awaas XaaydaGaay, from Hlkinil llnagaay (Cumshewa Village). From a young age, Shoshannah always had a strong drive to be creative. She pursued a Bachelor of Media Arts at Emily Carr University, with a major in hand-drawn animation. During these years, her interests shifted from classical animation to classical Haida formline. Today, Shoshannah works as a full-time artist, with a creative practice focused on Haida design, both traditional and digital painting, and illustration. Utilizing formline and passed-down cultural stories to colour her work, Shoshannah brings a contemporary lens to the Pacific Northwest artistic style of art-making.

Greene has exhibited at the Bill Reid Gallery, the Inuit Gallery of Vancouver, as well as the YVR Art Founda- tion all here in Vancouver, BC. She is a two-time Emerging Artist Scholarship recipient and has received two Bill McLennan Masterpiece Study Program Travel grants; one to attend the Field Museum in Chicago, Illinois and one to attend the Museum of Natural History in New York. At these institutions she had the opprotunity to research treasures in the Haida collections; masks, argillite sculptures, mountain goat horn spoons, regalia, and formline composition within the pieces which would go on to inform her own practice. In addition she has also received a microgrant to support research at the McCord Stewart Museum in Montreal, Quebec. Most recently her work was included in the Contemporary Native Art Biennial (BACA) in Montreal, QC in addition to being featured at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, New York.

“With each creation another root extends; a root weaving a stronger sense of identity and connectedness to my culture. Connecting with the masterworks and culture has increased my confidence in developing my practice as a young contemporary Haida artist.”

– SGidGang.Xaal / Shoshannah Greene