Indian Art from the Edge project helps First Nations artists showcase their work
The project helps works of art that would normally be ignored get a second chance
Not all painters and sculptors can have their work shown in a gallery, but now a B.C. project aims to help First Nations artists who are down on their luck to have their work promoted and protected.
Indian Art From The Edge was started by Marylee Stephenson after she saw the potential of stay-at-home native artists whose work was rarely seen.
"It's called Indian Art From The Edge because over time I had met artists who were often homeless or semi-homeless and in spite of that did beautiful work," the sociologist and entrepreneur told North by Northwest's Sheryl MacKay.
Stephenson works closely with the First Nation artists she features to aid them in having their work featured in galleries, shown to collectors, and even purchased.
She says the idea stemmed from a lack of protection for the artists themselves.
"One of the things that really bothered me was maybe they would sell a really nice design and then lose all control of it. They'd see their work on some fancy shirt or some cup and have no royalties over it."
To hear more on this project, listen to Stephenson's interview on North by Northwest by clicking the audio labelled Indian Art From The Edge interview.