Satin Hummingbird Fabric - Mike Alexander

• Satin

Mike Alexander is an Anishinaabe artist originally from Swan Lake First Nation, and paints in acrylic on canvas in the Woodlands tradition.

A Sixties Scoop survivor, his paintings are part of his journey of finding his way back to his artistic birthright, biological family, community of origin, and the culture that is his. Mike is interested in what happens when something foundational that has been stolen begins to become familiar again. Painting has become one of the ways he explores that journey of healing and reconnection.

Mike works with vibrant colour and abstracted images of animals, plants, water, and the natural world. These elements represent relationships. The animals and plants are our relatives and our teachers. They carry teachings that remind us that we are not separate from the world around us. We depend upon it, and our well-being is tied to the well-being of everything with which we share the land.

There is resilience in these paintings. Colour, movement, and abstraction allow me to celebrate life while also acknowledging loss, disruption and grief in a search for identity and belonging.

 Mike Alexander |Anishinaabe