Mackenzie Art Gallery to host Studio Sunday inspired by Michael Belmore’s “Smoulder”
Michael Belmore, Smoulder, 2010-2011, carved stone, gilded copper. Collection of the MacKenzie Art Gallery and University of Regina. Photo: Don Hall.
This week’s online Studio Sunday, we are going to be revisiting Michael Belmore’s “Smoulder”, presented by Canada Life Co!
Michael Belmore is an Anishinaabe artist from the Obishikokaang (Lac Saul) First Nation. His artwork has been shown across Canada and internationally. He makes sculptures using many natural materials and thinks about how materials interact with each other, how they interact with nature, and how people interact with them.
Inspired by Michael Belmore’s “Smoulder”, create a sculpture out of two materials that are important to you. All you will need is found materials (wood, beads, fabric, rocks, old toys, etc.), and sculpture tools (glue, tape, scissors, needle, thread, etc.).
SUNDAY, 29 AUGUST 2021
from 2:00pm – 4:00pm
ABOUT MICHAEL BELMORE’S SMOULDER
There are several layers of thought to the way Michael Belmore uses natural materials in his work. Take just one of those materials- the gleaming copper you can see on the carved edges of the rocks. It has several meanings:
In Anishinaabe beliefs, copper is thought to be the blood of two manitous (spirits). The animikiig (or thunderbirds) and the mishibizhiig (or underwater panthers) were said to fight in the places between where their homes met– on the shores of lakes, leaving behind their copper blood.
Because it is found on lakeshores, and because it is easy to shape, copper is often connected with water.
Because of the way that it reflects warm light, copper is often connected to fire. This artwork looks like a low, smouldering campfire.
Michael’s artwork often looks at the “in-between” places. Copper can represent the space between the land and sky, the connection between water and fire, and the connection between spirits and the Earth. The copper is placed in between the rocks where they fit together. Even the fact that this fire is smouldering makes us think about an in-between time: the time between it being roaring, and going out.
To learn more about Anishinaabe beliefs about copper and about Michael Belmore’s work, take a look at this catalog from his solo exhibition, mskwi-blood-sang. This resource is in both French and English.
ABOUT THE ARTIST, MICHAEL BELMORE
Michael Belmore is an Anishinaabe artist from the Obishikokaang (Lac Saul) First Nation. His artwork has been shown across Canada and internationally. He makes sculptures using many natural materials and thinks about how materials interact with each other, how they interact with nature, and how people interact with them. “…His work and processes speak about the environment, about land, about water, and what it is to be Anishinaabe . . . Seemingly small things, simple things, inspire Belmore’s work; the swing of a hammer, the warmth of a fire, the persistence of waves on a shore.” (Bio – Michael Belmore )