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The territorial government has issued a call for original artwork to be featured in its upcoming hunting, trapping and fishing guides.
In past years, the two guides have typically featured photos of NWT animals. Last year, the fishing guide even featured a photo of a fish not found in the territory.
The cover photo, which appeared to be a stock photo taken by an American photographer, was met with incredulity on social media and prompted an apology from the NWT’s Department of Environment and Climate Change.
Perhaps eager to not repeat the mistake, this year’s call for artwork excludes photographs and instead notes acceptable formats include physical paintings, drawings, mixed media, fibre and textile-based art, printmaking and sculptures that can be reproduced digitally.
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One fish and one animal piece of art will be chosen from the Beaufort Delta, Sahtu, Dehcho, North Slave and South Slave, for a total of 10 commissioned pieces.
On its website, the department gives suggestions for the types of fish and animals, or types of activities, it would like to feature.
“Artists will have creative freedom to interpret their selected theme through their own artistic style and perspective,” the website states, adding cultural imagery should only be included if it is from the artist’s own culture.
“Artwork should reflect NWT landscapes, wildlife or fish; depict respectful, legal and ethical harvesting practices; demonstrate appropriate safety practices; and highlight connections between people, wildlife, water and land.”
The expression of interest for the artwork closes on October 16.
In their applications, artists are asked to state the regions and themes they are interested in, describe other experiences completing commissioned work and confirm they can complete the work by January 15, 2027, quote the proposed price per commissioned piece, and share a few high-quality images of previous original works as samples.
