00:00
/
00:00
McMaster, Gerald
niya nÍhiyaw niya nÍhiyaw
1993 1993

The artist uses irony, humor, and satire in both words and images to question the fixity of Indigenous identities and tochallenge stereotype. However the title, Niya Nehiyaw – “I am a Cree Person” – is an unequivocal statement of Indigenous presence. For Gerald McMaster, the act of making art is inherently political for an Indigenous person, “All Native artists are political just because of their existence within the Western world. They’re fighting to be known in different ways and whatever strategy they employ is great.” (1992)

McMaster, Gerald
Red Pheasant First Nation, SK 1953 Red Pheasant First Nation, SK 1953
niya nÍhiyaw niya nÍhiyaw
1993 1993
acrylic, graphite on unstretched canvas Acrylique et graphite sur toile non tendue
height / width: 185.30 x 258.50 cm; 72.95 x 101.77 in.
Purchase, Chancellor Richardson Memorial Fund, 1995 Achat, Fonds commémoratif du chancelier Richardson, 1995
38-039

Subscribe to our “This Week at Agnes” e-newsletter to stay abreast of events, news and opportunities at the art museum.