Painting with Clay exhibition celebrates Indigenous family's artistic legacy

Artwork from three generations of the same family is on display at the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery in Waterloo.

The exhibit, called Painting with Clay, showcases the ceramic works of the Beam family. 

Carl Beam was an Indigenous artist from Manitoulin Island credited with helping to bring Indigenous art to a mainstream audience.

His daughter, Anong Migwans Beam, is carrying on his legacy and passing it down to her children. 

"It's really joyful," Beam told CBC K-W's The Morning Edition host Craig Norris. 

"It's really fun to see things that you've taught your kids coming back. But then they they create their own, they really take it and make it their own. It's really exciting," she said.

Carl Beam was known as a pioneer in giving Indigenous peoples a voice through art. His wife, Ann Beam, was also a well-known artist in her own right.

Anong Migwans Beam says her parents were able to support the family solely through their art. She added that growing up with such prolific artists as her parents gave her valuable insight into creating art. 

"It was definitely a real education. There were a lot of lean times, but they were really passionate about their work," she said. 

The next generation 

Beam was always set on following in her parent's footsteps. She studied at various art schools, including the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Her two sons have continued the Beam family's interest in art, featuring some of their work in the exhibition. 

"It's a really incredible feeling because I think I have a glimpse of what it was like for my mom and dad to work with me," she said.

Anong says that with this exhibition, she has seen the artistic methods she taught her two sons put into action.

The meaning behind the exhibition

Beam hopes the exhibition will draw attention to traditional Anishinaabe ceramic practices.

"There really haven't been any exhibits of traditional Anishinaabe ceramics," she said. There's been a lot for South American communities and even Mohawk ceramics, but as far as Anishinaabe territories, our ceramic tradition hasn't been widely discussed," she added.

She says the exhibition exemplifies how knowledge and skills can be passed down through tradition.

"Out of all of us, we don't really have a lot of university or school training on ceramics. It's mainly a kind of cultural training," she said.

She says traditional teaching is often overlooked, and she hopes the exhibit will remind people of other ways of learning.

The exhibition will be on display until May 28. Beam says she is proud to showcase how her family traditions have been passed on through multiple generations.

"I'm really proud to show knowledge transmission through generations," she said.

LISTEN | Exhibit highlights art from 3 generations of the Beam family:

The Morning Edition - K-W8:52Painting with Clay exhibit highlights art from 3 generations of the Beam family

Carl Beam was considered one of Canada's most ground-breaking Indigenous artists. His daughter, Anong, has carried on his artistic legacy as well as passed it down to her own children. And for the first time ever, art from all three generations is on display right here in Waterloo region.