Art collection granted new life

Page 3

An historic collection of Native art, once threatened with being dispersed among private buyers, is on its way to a new home.

A committee of Alberta artists and an elder is undertaking a year-long study into where the unique collection should be housed. The approximately 230 pieces of art and cultural objects faced the auction block less than a year ago when their guardian, the now defunct Indian Arts and Crafts Corporation, closed because of funding cuts.

"The importance of the collection is that it is an historic record of Native art in Alberta done by Native artists," said Alfred Young Man, associate professor at the University of Lethbridge.

The $75,000 collection is being housed temporarily in the Indian Arts Centre in Ottawa. There curators are cataloguing all the objects, reassessing their value and ensuring they are properly stored.

Early pieces of renown artists such as Alex Janvier, Mary Fraser-King, and Joan Cardinal Schubert are included in the collection, as well as excellent examples of bead and leather work.

"The corporation chose pieces that went beyond craft - they were so superior in the way they were done, they transcended the crafts moniker," said Young Man, committee representative.

Three artists, Kim Mclain, Joane Cardinal Schubert, and Jane Ash-Poitras will be meeting throughout the next year along with Elder Peter Standing Alone to study where the collection would best be housed. At least 15 organizations in Alberta are possible hosts, including the Calgary Glenbow Museum, the University of Lethbridge, and Edmonton's Provincial Museum.

Other collections amassed by provincial branches of the Indian Arts and Crafts Corporation have disappeared since funding was cut almost two years ago, he said. "If we hadn't been told this collection was being threatened, it would have been sold to separate collectors. It would be such a waste of valuable material," said Young Man.