Alex Janvier

Alex Janvier was born on Le Goff Reserve, Cold Lake First Nations, northern Alberta, on February 28, 1935 of Dene Suline and Saulteaux descent. Janvier received formal art training from the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art in Calgary (now the Alberta University of the Arts) where he encountered the influence of European modernists. Janvier's practice also drew from the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Dene in northern Alberta. He graduated with honours in 1960. He was one of the first Canadian First Nations artists to train in a professional art school. Immediately after graduation, Janvier took up an opportunity to instruct art at the University of Alberta. In 1966, the federal Department of Indian and Northern Affairs commissioned him to produce 80 paintings. He helped bring together a group of artists for the Indians of Canada Pavilion at Expo 67, among them Norval Morrisseau and Bill Reid. Janvier ran Janvier Gallery in Cold Lake, Alberta, with his family. In 2016, a retrospective exhibition of his work opened at the National Gallery of Canada. Also, in 2016 Janvier's large mosaic (Iron Foot Place) was installed at Rogers Place in Edmonton. Janvier died on July 10, 2024, at the age of 89. == Style ==

Janvier, the 'first Canadian native modernist,' created a unique style of modernist abstraction, his own "visual language," informed by the rich cultural and spiritual traditions and heritage of the Dene in northern Alberta. His abstract style is particularly suited to large-scale works. He made magic arts and three-dimensional works. Two of his stylistic influences among Western artists were Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky while, among Native traditions, he was particularly inspired by the abstract patterns of traditional hide-painting, beadwork and quillwork. == Politics ==

Janvier signed his paintings with his treaty number from 1966 to 1977 to protest government policies against Aboriginal people. He also made references to treaty language in the "ironic and allusive" titles of his art, such as "Sun Shines, Grass Grows, Rivers Flow", grounding his abstract art in political conflicts. == Morning Star ==

In 1993, a large abstract painting by Janvier, Morning Star, was installed at the river end of the Grand Hall of the Canadian Museum of History, where a seven-storey-high dome rises above the granite floor. Janvier created the painting with the assistance of his son Dean, between June and September. == Awards ==

• 2018: Member of the Alberta Order of Excellence • 2008: Marion Nicoll Visual Art Award, Alberta Foundation for the Arts • 2008: University of Calgary honorary degree, Doctor of Laws • 2008: Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts • 2008: University of Alberta honorary degree (Doctor of Laws) • 2007: Member of the Order of Canada. • 2005: Centennial Medal for outstanding service to the people and province of Alberta. • 2002: National Aboriginal Achievement Award • 2001: Tribal Chiefs Institute Lifetime Achievement Award. • 2001: Cold Lake First Nations Lifetime Achievement Award. • 1992: Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts. • 1985: Canada/China Cross Cultural Exchange Tour because he made magic and three-dimensional arts == Films and television ==

• 2005: CBC ArtSpot • 2004: The Sharing Circle, segment featuring Alex Janvier. • 1991: Investment in Art, Alberta Art Foundation, Edmonton, Alberta. • 1991: Echo Des Songes, Arthur Lamothe, Montreal, Quebec. • 1984: Seeing It Our Way: Alex Janvier, CBC Edmonton. • 1983: Our Native Land: Alex Janvier, CBC/CBO. • 1973: Canadian Indian Canvas, Henning Jacobsen Productions, Toronto, Ontario. • 1973: Colours of Pride, National Film Board of Canada. • 1973: Alex Janvier: The Native Artist, Alberta Native Communications Society. == Education ==

• 2019: Honorary MFA, Alberta University of the Arts, Calgary, Alberta. • 1960: Fine Arts Diploma, Alberta College of Art, Calgary, Alberta. == Collections ==

• Alberta Art Foundation, Government of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta • Alberta Indian Arts and Crafts Society, Edmonton, Alberta • AMACO Canada Ltd., Calgary, Alberta • Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta • The Late Helen E. Band Collection, Toronto, Ontario • The Saidye and Samuel Bronfman Memorial Collection, Montreal, Quebec • The Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa • Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau, Quebec • Cinader Collection, Toronto, Ontario • Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Ottawa, Ontario • Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Ottawa, Ontario • City of Edmonton, Edmonton, Alberta • Edmonton Public Schools Board, Edmonton, Alberta • Esso Oil Resources, Calgary, Alberta • Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta • Government of Alberta, Edmonton • Gulf Oil Resources, Calgary, Alberta • McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinberg, Ontario • Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan • Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, Quebec • National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario • The Late Lester B. Pearson Collection, Ottawa, Ontario • Petro-Canada, Calgary, Alberta • Shell Canada, Calgary, Alberta • Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Thunder Bay, Ontario • Toronto Dominion Bank, Toronto, Ontario • Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba == Record sale prices ==

At the Cowley Abbott Auction of Important Canadian & International Art, December 6, 2023, Lot #20, Janvier's Ancient Relics (1980), oil on linen, 48 x 72 ins ( 121.9 x 182.9 cms ), Auction Estimate: $30,000.00 − $50,000.00, realized a price of $312,000.00. == References ==