2005 – 2009
Central to this work is my research along the Carlton Trail (2005-9+). I went to Metis sites and talked to Elders between Winnipeg and Edmonton. Along the way I took photos that became roadkill and drive by paintings. I’d love to see them together. One day, I was doing an artist talk in north central SK (Carrot River) for a primarily Indigenous audience. When it came to the roadkill images, I said that I didn’t know how they fit with my Metis expressions. Later, an older Native guy came up to me: “So, you don’t know how the roadkill paintings are Indian?” “I’m not sure.” “Well. Let me see if I got this straight. You drive up and down the same road looking for and taking pictures of dead animals. You take the pictures to your studio and paint the images on stretched canvases and then try to sell them. Right?” “Right.” “Well then. The road is your trap line.”
