Image: Olivia Whetung, #35 (detail), 2015, 10/0 seed beads, thread, steel. Dimensions variable. Installation view from Beads, they’re sewn so tight, Textile Museum of Canada, October 10, 2018 to May 26, 2019. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid
Congratulations to Olivia Whetung who is the 2018 recipient of the John Hartman Award from The MacLaren Art Centre. Olivia Whetung is anishinaabekwe and a member of Curve Lake First Nation. She completed her BFA with a minor in anishinaabemowin at Algoma University, and has a MFA from the University of British Columbia (2016). Whetung’s work explores acts of/active native presence, as well as the challenges of working with/in/through Indigenous languages in an art world dominated by the English language. Her work is informed in part by her experiences as an anishinaabemowin learner. Olivia Whetung is from the area now called the Kawarthas and presently resides on Chemong Lake, Ontario.
The John Hartman Award is made possible with the generous support of MacLaren patron and regional artist John Hartman. This annual award of $4000 is granted to an emerging artist who is producing strong work and who could truly benefit by more time in the studio for research, experimentation and the development of new work. The artist is selected based on a recommendation from the MacLaren’s curatorial team and the award is administered by the MacLaren Art Centre. Past recipients include visual artists Richard Watts (2010); Duane Linklater (2011); Matt Bahen (2012); Julia Vandepolder (2013); Matt Macintosh (2014); Tanya Cunnington (2015); Erika DeFreitas (2016); and Kristie MacDonald (2017). As Executive Director Carolyn Bell Farrell comments, “The MacLaren is committed to fostering artistic talent. Through John Hartman’s generous support, an opportunity is provided annually for an emerging artist to explore and develop their creative potential with confidence, building a solid platform for future success.”
