Atheana Picha is a Coast Salish artist from the Kwantlen First Nation, and her grandmother was from the Tsartlip First Nation on Vancouver Island. Atheana also carries the name Nash’mene’ta’naht meaning “Go-getter woman” given to her by Gerry Oleman from the St’at’imc Nation. Atheana is a multidisciplinary artist working in two-dimensional and three-dimensional media. She attended Langara College for three years focusing on printmaking and ceramics. Picha has been learning wood carving and design from Aaron Nelson-Moody from the Squamish Nation and Coast Salish wool weaving from Debra Sparrow from the Musqueam Nation for several years. Her main focus now is learning from elders, from belongings in museum collections, and from the territory. She has public art pieces throughout the lower mainland such as murals, banners, and vinyl installations. Atheana is a two-time recipient of the YVR Art Foundation Emerging Artist Scholarship, and has shown work at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, Vancouver Art Gallery, and has work in the collections of the Museum of Vancouver, Burnaby Art Gallery, and Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art.

Tlehpik Hjalmer Wenstob was raised on Tzartus island in Barkley Sound, in Huu-ay-aht First Nations territory, off the west coast of Vancouver Island. It was there that his understanding and desire of pursuing both his traditional Nuu-chah-nulth and contemporary art practices began. Hjalmer Wenstob is an interdisciplinary artist who specializes in sculpture and carving. He is Nuu-chah-nulth from the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations on his father's side, and Norwegian and English on his mother’s side. Hjalmer speaks of three dialects of his work; contemporary, traditional, and community-based. Through his contemporary dialect, Hjalmer completed both an undergraduate and master's degree at the University of Victoria, exploring the relationships between cultures and art, and the balance between traditional and contemporary. He has taught post-secondary Indigenous studies for five years. His work is at times highly political, and uses humor and irony to pose difficult questions of respect, reconciliation and environmental issues. Recently, Hjalmer and his family opened Cedar House Gallery in Ucluelet, B.C. where Hjalmer is exploring ways of weaving his contemporary/political work with more traditional materials and styles. In 2018, Hjalmer was awarded the national William and Meredith Saunderson Prize for Emerging Artists in Canada, from the Hnatyshyn Foundation in Ottawa, Ontario.

Born and raised by two very artistic parents on the west coast, I’ve watched and participated in many different forms of art. From a young age I’ve always had a fascination with art, whether it be drawing, painting, or crochet. Along the way, I was presented with many opportunities that have helped shape me as a person and artist. In 2015, I was presented with the opportunity to participate in one of Mark Hobson’s painting workshops and to woodblock print with Dan Law at the Carving on the Edge Festival. I was also invited by Marika Swan to assist with the Nuu-chah-nulth Living Archive, a project of Carving on the Edge, to explore the depths of the Royal BC Museum in Victoria in what I would call ‘inspirational field work’. I have taken a Graphic Recording workshop and have dove head first into this method of arts-based community facilitation. I love the practice because it reminds me of how our people would have recorded things in the past. For instance a totem pole tells a story or a legend - Graphic Recording allows me to tell the story of a meeting or conference. I have been able to bridge language and art by facilitating graphic recordings for the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations band office and the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District’s Coastal Community Garden Initiative. I’ve also had the chance to help coordinate a series of small murals that are now hung at the Wickaninnish Community School garden. The students painted and decorated the panels after I came up with the different designs, creating a flowing piece of art against the fence. The mural represents Indigenous foods of our region. Collaborating with two local businesses, Reika and Porkchop Prophecy, I designed a shirt to spread awareness about Indigenous Lives Matter with all of the profits going to Tla-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks so they can continue to protect our land. I’m looking forward to what the future holds.

Joe Martin has been dedicated to mastering the art of traditional ƛaʔuukʷiatḥ (Tla-o-qui-aht) canoe carving for decades. He has sparked a revitalization of this ancient artform in his own community and among neighbouring nations in the Pacific Northwest. Taught by his father, the late Chief Robert Martin, Joe has continued to transfer his knowledge to future generations, taking on apprentices and leaving a legacy of over 70 carved canoes. Joe is well-known in the Nuu-chah-nulth area for the beauty and quality of his canoes that can be found in the waterways surrounding Vancouver Island. They can be found in villages throughout coastal British Columbia, as well as in museums and cultural displays in Canada and Europe. His work has been the subject of many documentaries and articles about the west coast region. Joe’s work is rarely solitary. At the request of his local community or neighbouring nations he leads cultural immersion camps, carving workshops, and provides one-on-one mentorship. As an ambassador for Clayoquot Sound and the traditions of the Nuu-chah-nulth, Joe has travelled to seven countries to promote cross-cultural understanding and educate people on First Nations worldviews and natural histories. Joe has been formally recognized for his incredible contributions to the artistic community - in 2013 he received a BC Creative Achievement Awards for First Nations’ Art and in 2012 he received a BC Community Achievement Award. He has been serving as elected Tla-o-qui-aht Councillor, since 2018, and has recently joined the newly formed Tla-o-qui-aht Repatriation Committee, funded by the Royal BC Museum.

Joshua Watts is a Nuu-Chah-Nulth, and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh First Nations professional artist. He has been creating art since 2013. He was raised in Squamish where he started making art under the mentorship of hereditary chief and master carver Ray Natroro. Joshua has studied under many great artists such as: the late chief and master carver Beau Dick, Ray Natraoro, Wayne Alfred, Corey Bulpitt, Joe Martin, Gordon Dick and Linda Lindsay, amounting to over 8 years of intense mentorship. He recently finished his debut solo exhibition titled “Gifts from the Ancestors” shown at the Victoria arts council. He is also leading research towards cultural revitalization, facilitating land based learning initiatives and continually discovering the beauty of his ancestry through the art of his people. He is a 2 times recipient of the YVR Art foundation Artist scholarship award, with further recognition from the founder Frank O’Neilfor his contribution in cultural revitalization in First Nations communities.

Kelly Robinson (b.1981) is an interdisciplinary Nuxalk/Nuu-chah-nulth visual artist. A member of the Nuxalk Nation in Bella Coola, British Columbia, he lives and works in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island. He has apprenticed with artists Jim McGuire and Gordon Dick. Robinson has also mentored under renowned artists Tim Paul, Dempsey Bob, Alvin Mack, Stan Bevan and Ken McNeil. Robinson uses his art to tell stories of the Nuxalk and Nuu-chah-nulth land, culture and people. He examines stories of the supernatural, potlatch societies, as well as the land and the sea. Robinson’s work is represented in private, corporate and public collections around the world.

Beyond my personal interest in historical art and the processes that create it, I believe deeply in the power of traditional Ts’msyen art and culture. This method of visual storytelling depicts the deeper story of our people’s familial ranks and migratory paths. The crest system gave rise to the Northwest Coast art form, which I am now using to communicate. Morgan Asoyuf, 2019 Morgan Asoyuf (née Green) was born March 24, 1984 in Prince Rupert BC. Morgan is Ts'msyen Eagle Clan from Ksyeen River (Prince Rupert area), BC. Her Lineage is Lax Giik, XGiik , Git-Hoon (people of the weir net). Morgan’s artistic career started with a Blanche Macdonald Centre Fashion Design Diploma in 2003, and an interest in painting Ts’msyen Designs. She studies wood sculpture with Henry Green and Phil Gray, and enjoys teaching the art form in varied settings. She has worked with the Vancouver Community College as well as the Kilala Lelum Native Health Centre on the downtown eastside of Vancouver. She took Bronze Casting at The Crucible art compound in Oakland, where industry professionals taught her both investment mold and sand casting. In 2010 Morgan studied at Vancouver Metal Art School under Gerold Mueller, a goldsmith from Pforzheim Germany. She received diplomas in both Jewelry Design and Stone Cutting, learning special techniques such as hollow construction, custom stone cutting, and advanced soldering. Morgan has studied design and engraving with Richard Adkins, and completed Gem Setting courses at Revere Academy, San Francisco.

I grew up in Ruskin, B.C. on the Whonnock Reserve #1. My family on my mother's side are direct descendants of the people who lived on the Stave River, a tributary of the Fraser River. Though I grew up in Ruskin, I am a member of the Squamish Nation, which is situated in North Vancouver, B.C. As a child I spent many days on the Fraser River netting salmon with my uncle. He would set his net, and we would wait for the floats to go down. This would indicate salmon hitting the net. During this time, my uncle would tell me the stories that were passed on to him. Since then, I have had a strong interest in my culture. I first started to learn to carve when I was a teenager. I learned from my uncle, Jack Miranda. He taught me how to carve ivory and wood and how to make my own tools. I now carve mostly red and yellow cedar, as well as alder and birch. I also have to credit my two teachers, Sean Hinton and Tom Patterson, for the progress I made with my art in the last two years. As an artist I want every piece to be better than the last and always strive to do the best I can. Since 2009 I have worked with my nephew on two projects as a volunteer. The first was a house pole that was gifted by Mission City, B.C. to its sister city, Oyama, Japan, where it now proudly stands with Mt. Fuji in the background. The second project was two welcome figures, one male and one female, 18 feet tall and 3 1/2 feet in diameter, carved for B.C. Hydro for the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, B.C. They now stand welcoming guests to B.C. Hydro's main office foyer in Vancouver, B.C. I also worked as an apprentice for George Pennier on a project for the new emergency waiting room at Chilliwack General Hospital in early 2011. This project was a 8 feet in diameter by 4 inches thick spindle whorl, and can now be viewed at the Chilliwack hospital in its new emergency area. Since then I have been busy improving my skills as a carver, working and striving to be better with every project I take on as an artist.

Timmy has been advocating internationally for his Nuu-chah-nulth language since he was 9 years old, and began university-level Indigenous language classes at age 10. Alongside his advocacy, he completed a Bachelor of Education degree with a focus on Nuu-chah-nulth language, and is a registered British Columbia teacher. Tim is a carver, and songs are his primary focus. Hjalmer and Timmy are brothers and have been collaborating for 15+ years, working together to create Nuu-chah-nulth community songs, dances, art installations, Nuu-chah-nulth children’s books, as well as many other interdisciplinary projects.

Tim Paul began to paint at the age of ten, and he began carving in 1975 at Arts of the Raven Gallery in Victoria, BC. At Arts of the Raven, Tim worked under the direction of Ben Andrews, and later under John Livingston. He assisted Richard Hunt in the carving program that the Royal BC Museum held at Thunderbird Park in Victoria in 1977. From 1984 to 1992, Tim was Senior Carver at the Royal BC Museum, and left that position to oversee a Native education program for Vancouver Island. Tim also worked on a Nuu-chah-nulth pole that was given by the People of British Columbia to the city of Auckland in celebration of the 1990 Commonwealth Games. As well as carving, Tim has released numerous limited edition silkscreen prints which portray various legends of Nuu-chah-nulth culture. In 2005, several masks by Tim were featured in the Changing Hands: Art Without Reservation 2 exhibit at the Museum of Art and Design in New York. Tim is a master carver and accomplished artist, and an integral part of the cultural fabric of Nuu-chah-nulth. He is an activist, artistic collaborator, cultural knowledge keeper and holder, and environmentalist. Tim sought out time with elders and teachers to record some of their cultural and Nuu-chah-nulth linguistic knowledge.

Info coming soon!

Valeen Jules is a two-spirit birth worker and canoe carver from the Nuu-chah-nulth and Kwakwaka'wakw nations. Valeen has been known to friends and community as "the doula that never leaves", "the eagle soaring above", and "the only top at the table".