Delaney Keshena (Menomini) is a moccasin maker and fine artist currently based in Minneapolis, MN. With the body as site, Keshena uses hair, skin and glass in their practice of crafting objects that relate stories of family, nation and contemporary Indigenous experience. Delaney’s work has been shown in Italy, Belgium and throughout the United States. They are a poet and have been named as a finalist for the James Welch Prize. Delaney is completing a two-year residency with the North House Folk School, in Grand Marais, MN, and is an Incubator Artist-in-Resident with Public Functionary.  

@delaneykeshena 

Jean Marshall is of Ahnishnaabe/English descent, born and raised in Thunder Bay, Ontario. She is a band member of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, also known as Big Trout Lake, Treaty 9. She currently lives along the shore of Lake Superior. Jean Marshall has been practicing professionally as a visual artist for the past 20 years. She is known for her work with beads & quills. As a child, she was surrounded by beadwork. The value of craftsmanship, quality and the importance of using her hands was instilled at a young age. Unknowingly, she absorbed skill, colour, design, pattern and techniques to be used later in life. This lasting admiration grew into her present-day practice, becoming a beadworker & leatherworker. She does this full-time for herself & community. Experiential learnings from the land and relations are important to her. Jean attended the Dene Nahjo Urban Hide Tanning Residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Fall of 2018. She was mentored by the Dene Nahjo Collective members, Mandee McDonald, Melaw Nakehk’o and Tania Larsson. She observed and learned from master hide tanners Lucy Ann Yakalela & the late Judy Lafferty. After this life changing experience, she returned home to practice working on her own hides. She now is dedicated to leading, organizing, and supporting hide tanning projects in her community. She is still a learner and aspiring hide tanner with goals of becoming a master hide tanner someday. 

@marshall.childforever 

Kanina Terry is an Anishnaabe-kwe with an Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) mother and a white father. She was born and lives on her mother’s traditional lands of Obishikokang (Lac Seul First Nation) in Sioux Lookout, Ontario. She is passionate about her son and family, food, hide tanning and creating things with her hands. Kanina finds inspiration from her teachers, ancestors, bush life, Indigenous artists and knowledge holders and is determined to reclaim knowledge and skills denied to her as a result of assimilation, colonialism and residential schools.  

@criesovermoosehides 

Katie Longboat is a Cree and Haudenosaunee beadwork artist from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory in Southern Ontario, with family connections in Thunder Bay and Northern Ontario. Her beadwork incorporates intricate designs, florals, contemporary materials and bold colours to create unique jewelry pieces and beaded artwork. Katie is inspired to create work that is reflective of her family and background, the natural world, and draws inspiration from both Cree and Haudenosaunee patterns and styles of beadwork. Katie currently resides in Toronto.

@katielongboat.beadwork 

Leanna Marshall MSW, RSW, PCAT has been a social worker for 20 + years. She has specialized in working with Indigenous communities, particularly around healing from intergenerational trauma, loss, and self-esteem. Leanna is proud to be a graduate from the inaugural 2023 Indigenized Art Therapy Program from the WHEAT Institute in Winnipeg. She is a band member of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation located in Treaty 9 in Northern Ontario. Leanna was born and raised in Thunder Bay, ON where she continues to reside. Leanna uses a combination of art therapy, EMDR therapy, and land-based relationship building to strengthen connections with all of our ancestral relations. Leanna has a small private on-line and in-person practice where she offers individual sessions and facilitation services. Leanna is also a self-taught artist, poet, and performance artist. She explores colonial injustices through kind-heartedness. Leanna’s centre are her two daughters who provide much humour and vibrancy to the world.

@twinindianlove 

Shannon Gustafson (Kiiwednong Kwe) is a registered member of Whitesand First Nation, Ontario. She was raised on the Serpent River First Nation, Ontario but now resides in the city of Thunder Bay in which she calls home. Her artistic and creative nature stems from her childhood and inspired by powwow culture. Shannon honors her gifts everyday by working as a full-time artist with support from her family. She has raised a family of artists including her husband and children. The intergenerational transfer of traditional knowledge is important to her, and she continues to teach and share her gifts with her family. She has created a strong and beautiful family bond. Her accomplishments and hardships have shaped and guided her artistic practices. She uses her art to reconnect with ceremony and to support her healing journey. She believes that her gifts have meaning and purpose. Today, personal healing and Cultural preservation is her driving force. She loves exploring and learning old art forms specific to Ojibwe culture, including traditional Ojibwe floral beadwork, patterns, and designs. She has experience with various artistic mediums including beadwork, leatherwork and textiles. She has received numerous Ontario Arts Council grants and is forever grateful for the support and opportunities for continual learning. She was also a recipient of the Hnatyshyn Foundation Reveal Indigenous Artist awards in 2017. Shannon is grateful for the many blessings in her life. She is passionate and dedicated to indigenous arts practices and will continue to inspire her community, her people and her nation for many years to come.  

@r_s_gustafson 

Shelby Gagnon is an Anishinaabe/Cree artist from Aroland First Nation of the wolf clan. She is an arts educator, hide tanner, muralist, curator, and advocate for the lands and waters. Through involvement with community-engaged organizations and projects, she uses multi-disciplinary mediums to express and share her holistic feelings focused on land, water and all the spirits that call it their home.  

@rootveggii 

Gail Bannon is a proud band member of Fort William First Nation. She has been using birchbark (wiigwaas) as an artistic medium for 15+ years, creating both traditional birch bark baskets and developing new designs. Gail uses raw materials from the land; each basket is made from natural resources collected around Gitchi Gami such as red willow, cedar, bark and spruce roots. Gail’s use of bark connects her to the traditions of the Anishinaabe people, learning from the land and the stories the bark tells. In addition to their function as beautiful decor, wiigwaas mukuk have many practical uses including carrying newborn babies, berry picking, garden harvesting, and storing medicines.  

@wiigwaas14