Matthew Vukson, an artist with family ties to Behchokǫ̀, is featured in a new exhibit at Yellowknife’s Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre.
The exhibit – Ehts’o nàtsʼeelıı (We Sew Beads) – opened on June 5 and will run until December. The exhibit showcases approximately nine years and thousands of hours of work, all hand-beaded by Vukson.
Thursdays, 1-3pm: Straight out of West Ndılǫ, Sarah Erasmus hosts two hours weekly dedicated to amplifying Indigenous voices in the North. On the June 12 show, she’s joined by Sobey Art Award-nominated Nunavut artist Tarralik Duffy. Listen live via the Cabin Radio website or on the app.
Vukson, a Tłı̨chǫ Dene artist, told Cabin Radio’s Sarah Erasmus he was taught how to bead by his mother and his passion for beading was ignited when he attended a healing workshop with her.
After that initial workshop, Vukson said he began to build his “beading empire.”
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He said he started with moccasins, various smaller projects and a vest, which took him approximately two and a half years to complete.
Vukson travelled across South America, gaining inspiration everywhere he went.
“I was doing beadwork when I was travelling, so that was inspiring me. There are real connections to these pieces and there is storytelling within,” he told Erasmus.
Some of the art touches on hard-hitting subjects, such as what Vukson described as “tools of oppression” and Canada’s dark history surrounding residential schools, as well as happy memories and experiencing life with loved ones.
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“In beading, stories are told by patterns – but colours give these stories depth and feeling,” Vukson is quoted as saying on the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre’s webpage about the exhibit.
While his work often results in fashion items like vests, hats, moccasins and jewellery, he has also produced a unique collection of beaded sculptures.
The exhibit can be viewed from 10am-5pm every Tuesday to Sunday.
