Kanien'kehá:ka artist and activist is the 1st Indigenous winner of the Montreal Art Prize

Katsi'tsakwas (Ellen Gabriel), Kanienkeha:ka (Mohawk) artist, filmmaker and activist is the first Indigenous artist to win the prestigious Montreal Arts Award.

The Montreal Concept Art Grand Prix began in 1985. The award includes a $30,000 grant for his 35 years of activism and performance.

“Such strong and creative artists were finalists, so I'm very proud,” said Katsitsakvas.

His 2023 documentary Kanatenhs — When pine needles fall Centers the voices of Kanien'kehá:ka women during the Oka crisis.

The 78-day conflict that began on July 11, 1990 between the Kanienkeha:ka (Mohawk) community of Kanesatake, the Surrey du Quebec provincial police, and later the Canadian military was over a disputed area of ​​land. Pine trees northwest of Montreal.

She said when the SWAT team first arrived, they were greeted by unarmed Kanien'keha:ka women, who are title holders and therefore considered protectors of the land.

Mohawk activist Ellen Gabriel leads a group of women to the media in the summer of 1990. He was chosen by the residents of Longhouse and his Kanesata:ke community to be their spokesperson during the infamous 78-day “Oka Crisis”. The Struggle to Protect Ancestral Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) Land in Quebec. (The Canadian Press)

“Our mothers, aunts and grandmothers were examples before us.

She says the men in her community have shown courage, but the contribution of local women to the resistance has been overlooked.

Katsitsakvas said her film restores a narrative distorted by colonization, in which her female ancestors felt the brutality of colonization on their families, land and communities, but did not remain within the bounds of resistance.

“The time has come for women to be recognized for their equal contribution to the survival of our people,” Katsitsakvas said.

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Both the Jury Prize and the Tele-Québec Audience Award presented by the Caisse Desjardins de la Culture went to the same organization, the circus arts company Marguerite à bicyclette.

The jury's criteria for the 38th Grand Prix were innovation, originality and authenticity of artistic approach, will to act and desire to impact the community, originality and relevance of strategies to reach audiences or target mobilization in Montreal. community.

Milen Guay, cultural consultant – Indigenous Art of the Montreal Art Concept, said it's a very competitive process.

“They chose him mainly because he has a strong voice in the communities, especially in Kanesatake,” Guay said.

The award recognizes Katsitsakvas' career as a visual artist, as well as the impact his activism has had on indigenous and environmental rights.

Last week's awards ceremony featured Kanienkeha:ka visual artist Hanna Claus from Tiendinaga Mohawk Territory in Ontario.

Klaus has been on the Montreal Art Concept Board for six years and is still on its Indigenous Art Appreciation Committee.

“I found out he went back to film school and was so excited to make this movie,” Klaus said.

“It's something that's near and dear to his heart, and he was able to put it together and put it out there in the world like that, and I thought that was really cool.”

Kanatenhs – when pine needles fall It won Best Canadian Short Film at last year's Montreal International First Peoples Festival and has been screened at nearly 30 festivals around the world.