Sunday July 3, 10am - 4pm
Little Mac's Parking Lot, 991 Wellington St. W, Ottawa, ON
Celebrate the end of Indigenous History Month with this fun event near the store! Support talented Indigenous Makers from across Turtle Island. Shop their unique wares, hear our Keynote Speaker and listen to some live music!
Organized by Maker House on unceded Anishinaabe Algonquin Territory.
Since the age of 9, Aurora has had an impressive musical career. Winning the grand prize at 2008’s National Aboriginal Day ‘We Got Talent’ competition in Ottawa, Aurora has performed the Senate at Parliament Hill, Grand Hall at the Museum of Civilization, pow-wows, numerous music festivals, gala’s and conferences as well as having appeared on numerous T.V. and radio shows and other publications.
Aurora is now 21 yrs old and performs with various musical acts as well as solo performing her repertoire of originals. Aurora is also a classical pianist and has won many nation-wide competitions for composition. She is currently working on her second album.
She will also be joining us and selling her wares, from beadwork to art!
Calista Paul (or Callie as her friends call her) is a 22 year old mother and Indigenous beading artist. With Ojibwe, Algonquin and Cree descent, and ties to Temagami First Nation, Calista brings together her heritage and childhood experiences to work for a better life for her family.
She's the daughter of Crystal Semaganis, and while Calista won't be present for the market, her beadwork will be!
Crystal Semaganis is an Indigenous activist living in Temagami, ON., with a focus on advocacy for the Sixties Scoop, residential school survivors and environmental issues. She is a mother of four, grandmother of two, an artist and a jingle dress dancer. Checkout her website at sevenwolves.org.
Mad Aunty is visual artist Joi T. Arcand (Muskeg Lake Cree Nation). Mad Aunty began making jewelry using brightly-coloured laser-cut acrylic in 2017 and has recently expanded to 3D printed jewelry, clothing, and accessories. Her work is unapologetically Cree and seeks to promote and celebrate the language in everyday life.
View Joi's WorkJolene Saulis Dione is an instructor at the First Nations Technical Institute. Ms. Dione Is a Maliseet from Tobique First Nation in New Brunswick. For the last 17 years, Jolene has worked with Indigenous issues pre-dominantly in the reconciliation, justice and gender equity areas. She also facilitates the Blanket Exercise for KAIROS and was a member of their planning committee for the closing of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Liquid Smudge is a spray blend of First Nations medicines: sage, sweetgrass, cedar and tobacco. Combining these traditional medicines and other herbs create blends of smudge that have calming, changing, positive and serene properties.
Liquid Smudge is a smokeless, pure organic alternative to burning sage and other medicines. These locally naturally crafted liquid smudges work on the individual using them and helps to purify their space.
Smudging is a traditional way to balance one’s mind-body-spirit well-being. Usually, medicines such as sage are burned causing a smoke that you brush with a feather towards yourself. However, Liquid smudge is an alternative to the traditional smudge often used by those who prefer a smokeless smudge, have allergies or sensitivities or live/work reside in areas where smoke is not tolerated.
Justin Kewaquado is a proud Annishinaabe Canadian contemporary digital/traditional artist making art focused around the natural world and inspiring stories.
Kirk Brant was born in Toronto, Canada in 1969. He is a member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory and currently lives in Ottawa, Canada. Brant creates scenes from his personal life and, as an avid outdoorsman; much of his life in the bush is captured in his artwork. Hunting and fishing are his favorite subjects for his art and he uses mixed media elements, which involve tissue paper and acrylic paints in his creations. A graphic designer and aboriginal painter, Brant blends traditional elements with modern techniques developing a unique style that is collectible, cutting-edge, contemporary art. Brant describes much of his work as meditations; his works are lively, with heavy movement and inspirational designs.
View Kirk's WorkThe business began as a mobile retail unit travelling from Pow-Wow to Pow-Wow throughout North America in the family van. During slow times the family sold to stores. When the demand from stores increased, it persuaded the family to set-up an office location in British Columbia.
Without any formal business training, the owner, Sandi Monague Roy, developed the company while raising five daughters, two who have grown up in the company and are now an integral part of the business. The family is a member of the Beausoleil First Nations of Ontario (Ojibway).
All of Monague's products are handmade by Indigenous peoples from across Canada.
Morgan Asoyuf is an indigenous artist from Prince Rupert, BC. She has apprenticed with artists such as Richard Adkins (Haida), Henry Green (Tsm'syen), and attended Vancouver Metal Art School with German Goldsmith Gerold Mueller. Morgan loves teaching, creating, and fishing on the Skeena River. She is driven to pursue the art form as both a purist and a lover of experimental technique.
Paula Naponse created Ondarez Clothing in 2008 in a small First Nation in Northern Ontario. It began with a pair of red striped shorts made in grade 8, and hasn't stopped since. Paula brings the culture of the Anishinaabe to her work, crafting pieces that can be worn and used by anyone. Creating her own regalia, beadwork, moccasins and candles, everything Paula does is self taught. A single mother, all of her work is made with materials that are sourced from across North America. She also recently opened a pop-up café called Beandigen Café at Lansdowne in Ottawa, featuring coffee, Indigenous arts and products!
Born from the inspiration of Lise and Lara, a Wendat mother-daughter duo, the Onquata company is renowned for its hand painted paddles inspired by First Nations culture. Stemming from a matriarchal tradition, their creations are imbued with their traditions and draw their inspiration from ancestral know-how. Indeed, the paddles, now contemporary objects, find their roots in the designs offered by the family business.
They are inspired by their traditional use, from the time when they were used for portaging: travelling by lakes and rivers to trade and to meet other nations.
Each paddle is hand-painted and made to order. In order to meet all needs, paddles can be decorative and offered in different formats, but can also retain their traditional uses and be adapted for use on the water.
Shilo Cote Pizendewatch is from Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg and Wiikwemikoong Unceded Territories. An Algonquin Odawa mother of three, who has been making jewelry for over 15yrs using ethically sourced porcupine quills, semi precious stones and crystals. She owns a small Indigenous business called Quality Quills.
View Shilo's WorkTamara Sarah Tikisa Takpannie is a self-taught Inuk artist currently located on the unceeded territory of the Algonquin Nation in the urban Ottawa-Gatineau region. Originally from Iqaluit, Nunavut, Tikisa focuses on creating jewelry that provides the space for owners to feel beautiful and comfortable in her artwork.
Her artwork is all hand-made and provides a luxury feeling with intricate beadwork.
Tulu is Inuk and Plains Cree, as well as being the son of Crystal Semaganis. He is a budding artist who's discovered a joy in making moose hide mitts. Come snag a warm pair and support his work!
Wabanaki Maple Syrup was started by Jolene Laskey in 2017 as a way to share her Wolastoqey culture with the world, and felt Maple Syrup would be a perfect fit. Producing premium, barrel aged and traditional maple syrup, Wabanaki is a perennial favourite of both staff and customers.
We recommend arriving by foot or public transit, but if driving there is free street parking available on Wellington and nearby side streets with a time limit.
The market will be setup right next door to our shop on Wellington, in the parking lot of Little Mac's.
We recognize that Indigenous peoples are not a monolith and there are many different First Nations, Metis and Inuit communities across this land. This event seeks to celebrate a diversity of artists and cultures who identify as being part of these Indigenous communities. We have done our best to ensure authenticity, while respecting the fact that not every person who is Indigenous has the same background (Eg. Status vs. non-status; On reserve vs. In the city). In the words of an artist: "we hope to work together towards decolonization & making these lands be all they can be."
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