Sarah Whalen Lunn, aka InkStitcher, 2024 Digital Illustration

Indigenous Narratives in Art explores contemporary Indigenous arts through conversations with artists, curators, and writers. Each episode highlights Indigenous perspectives often underrepresented in mainstream art discussions, covering topics from critical writing and curatorial practices to digital archiving and intergenerational dialogue. These episodes provide insight, inspiration, and a deeper understanding of Indigenous arts and culture for artists, curators, students, and anyone passionate about the arts.

This podcast is made possible by the generous support of “Digital Strategies; Cultivate Grant” from Canada Council for the Arts and the “Listen, Hear Our Voices” Program from Library and Archives Canada, who help us in our mission to amplify Indigenous voices.

Indigenous Narratives in Art – Episode 1
Supporting the Development of Youth in Curatorial Studies and Critical Art Writing

With Lori Beavis
Daphne Art Center/Centre d’art daphne
ICCA’s Board Treasurer

In this inaugural episode, we speak with Lori Beavis, ICCA’s Board Treasurer and a leader at the Daphne Art Center/Centre d’art daphne, about the importance of Indigenous narratives in contemporary art. We explore strategies for supporting youth in curatorial studies and critical art writing, highlighting initiatives that foster creative growth, mentorship, and Indigenous-led perspectives in the arts. This episode offers insight, inspiration, and practical ideas for anyone interested in Indigenous arts, education, and cultural leadership.

Lori Beavis is the Executive Director of daphne, Tiohtià:ke and Quebec’s first Indigenous artist-run centre.  Lori is also an independent curator, art educator and art historian living and working in Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montreal. Identifying as Michi Saagiig (Mississauga) Anishinaabe and Irish-Welsh settler. Beavis is a citizen of Hiawatha First Nation at Rice Lake, Ontario. 

Her curatorial work, art practice and research, articulates narrative and memory in the context of family and cultural history, and reflects on cultural identity, art education and self-representation. She has curated solo exhibitions with artists Shelley Niro, Jobena Petonoquot, and Barry Ace. She has curated group exhibitions including The Rebel Yells; Initawa / to hear or understand her in a certain way; and Ininige / to hold, and co-curated Creation Stories for BACA 2024 with Teresa Vander Meer Chassè, Emma Hassencahl-Perley and Jake Trimble.

From 2016 to 2023 she worked with her Hiawatha First Nation community on an exhibition of the quilled, birch bark makakoon created by women at Rice Lake village and gifted to the Prince of Wales in 1860. The award-winning exhibition, Mnaajtood ge Mnaadendaan: Miigwewinan Michi Saagiig Kwewag Miinegoowin Gimaans Zhaganaash Aki, 1860  / To Honour and Respect: Gifts from the Michi Saagiig Women to the Prince of Wales, 1860, co-curated with Dr. Laura Peers, was exhibited at the Peterborough Museum & Archives, Nogojiwanong/ Peterborough from April – November, 2023.

Currently co-Chair, Lori has served on the Executive  of the Indigenous Curatorial Collective Board of Directors since 2019.

Indigenous Narratives in Art – Episode 2
Advancing Self-Determination in the Arts

With Jason Baerg
Founding Member of Shushkitew Collective

Join us as we sit down with Jason Berg of the Shushkitew Collective to explore how Indigenous gatherings—guided by regional cultural and artistic knowledge keepers—foster self-determination and flourishing in the arts. We discuss the collective’s role in knowledge exchange, identifying the needs of Métis and Indigenous artists, and supporting vibrant, self-determined futures. This episode also highlights sharing insights from gatherings, amplifying Indigenous voices, and contributing to arts participation and digital publications across communities.

Jason Baerg is a registered member of the Métis Nations of Ontario and serves their community as an Indigenous activist, curator, educator, and interdisciplinary artist. Baerg graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, a Master of Fine Arts from Rutgers University, and is enrolled in the Ph.D. program at Monash University. Baerg teaches as the Assistant Professor in Indigenous Practices in Contemporary Painting and Media Art at OCAD University. Exemplifying their commitment to community, they co-founded Shushkitew Collective and The Métis Artist Collective. Baerg has served as volunteer Chair for such organizations as the Indigenous Curatorial Collective and the National Indigenous Media Arts Coalition. As a visual artist, they push digital interventions in drawing, painting, and new media installation. Select international solo exhibitions include Canada House in London, UK, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia, and the Digital Dome at the Institute of the American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA. They have sat on numerous art juries and won awards through such facilitators as the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and The Toronto Arts Council. For more information about their practice, please visit JasonBaerg.ca

Adrienne Larocque is a nêhiyaw beadwork artist and curator. She is a member of kisipatnahk (Louis Bull), one of the four nations collectively known as Maskwacis in Treaty 6 Territory. She grew up in her community, spending time in both Louis Bull where her father’s side of the family is from and the Samson Cree Nation, her maternal side. Adrienne holds a Master of Arts in Cultural Studies, Curatorial Practices from the University of Winnipeg and a Bachelor of Arts in Native Studies with Honours from the University of Alberta. Her work is grounded in nêhiyaw ways of knowing, combining traditional and contemporary practices in beadwork, textiles, and relationality. Adrienne is based in amiskwaciwâskahikan and spends as much time as she can with her nieces, nephews and her dog Willow.

Lori Beavis from Indigenous Narratives in Art – Episode 1: Supporting the Development of Youth in Curatorial Studies and Critical Art Writing is the Executive Director of daphne, Tiohtià:ke and Quebec’s first Indigenous artist-run centre.  Lori is also an independent curator, art educator and art historian living and working in Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang / Montreal. Identifying as Michi Saagiig (Mississauga) Anishinaabe and Irish-Welsh settler. Beavis is a citizen of Hiawatha First Nation at Rice Lake, Ontario. (Full Bio Above)

Jason Baerg from Indigenous Narratives in Art – Episode 2: Advancing Self-Determination in the Arts is a registered member of the Métis Nations of Ontario and serves their community as an Indigenous activist, curator, educator, and interdisciplinary artist. Baerg graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, a Master of Fine Arts from Rutgers University, and is enrolled in the Ph.D. program at Monash University. (Full Bio Above)

Tiffany Shaw is a Métis architect, artist and curator based in Alberta. She holds a BFA from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD) University, a Masters in Architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) and is currently working at Reimagine Architects and recently started an Indigenous owned consulting company, named Reimagine Gathering. Shaw has exhibited widely including the Architecture Venice Biennale, Winnipeg Art Gallery, Pier 21, Agnes Etherington Art Centre and the Chicago Architecture Biennial. She has been the recipient of multiple public art commissions such as Edmonton’s Indigenous Art Park and Winnipeg’s Markham Bus Station.

Oscillating between digital and analogue methodologies Shaw’s work gathers notions of craft, memory and atmosphere. Her practice is often guided by communal interventions as a way to engage a lifted understanding of place. While born in Calgary and raised in Edmonton, Shaw’s Métis lineage derives from Fort McMurray via Fort McKay/Fort Chipewyan and the Red River.

Justine “Tini” Stilborn is an arts professional, curator, and advocate dedicated to amplifying Indigenous voices in contemporary art. She serves as the Digital Programs & Communications Manager at the Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA), leading digital publications, archival initiatives, and outreach programs that support Indigenous curators, artists, and writers.

Tini has extensive experience in arts leadership and governance, serving on the CARFAC Saskatchewan Board (Past-President) and the CARFAC National Board, where she has contributed to policy development and programs that strengthen the rights and opportunities of artists. She has also managed marketing, communications, and branding for multiple arts organizations, helping to expand audiences, foster engagement, and create meaningful platforms for critical discourse.

On Indigenous Narratives in Art, Tini brings her expertise in arts leadership, curation, and communications to the conversation, guiding listeners through insightful discussions about Indigenous art, curatorial practice, and cultural advocacy. Her voice highlights the importance of accessible dialogue, knowledge-sharing, and amplification of Indigenous perspectives in contemporary arts and critical discourse.

Special thanks to

Our Podcast Editor

We would like to thank our editor, David Roman, Owner and Operator of Nerd Party Entertainment, for his care, technical expertise, and thoughtful post-production work that brings each episode to life.

Our Podcast Funders

This podcast is supported by the Digital Strategies: Cultivate Grant from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Listen, Hear Our Voices program from Library and Archives Canada, whose support helps sustain Indigenous-led digital storytelling and archival work.