Thursday 28 October 2010

Nanabajou in Frog Skin connected with the Worlds flood (1968) Norval Morrisseau and the David Voss Letters (2001-2008)

Nanabajou in Frog Skin
connected with the Worlds flood
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Ink on paper, 22” x 30”, 1968
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Wednesday 27 October 2010

Mishipashoo (1959) Norval Morrisseau

Mishipashoo
  - Norval Morrisseau -
Watercolor and pastel crayon on card, c.1959, 32" x 36"
Collection of the National Museum of Man, Ottawa

NORVAL

The last time I saw you, was the first time
Live, in person
The man
Live, in person
The Artist
Live, in person
The Icon
Live, in person
The Shaman

I walked through your exhibition at the NAG
I felt wrapped in an ancestor’s blanket

You Norval, the great one
You Norval, the innovator
You Norval, the astral traveller
You Norval, set the pace

Was there a race?
For the artworld to behold
To acknowledge the work of your ancestors told
To help the artworld and public understand
The medicine in your paint…is what is at hand
Ahhhhhhhh…look at his colourful work
OMG she faints…
…cuz the paint …

His paint…his paint!!!
Norval’s paint, pushing to and fro
You push the paint Norval with Shaman flair
With ease and grace…oh!! how you care
You pushed the paint across this land
You pushed the paint into the universe
The gallery was full of mind!
The gallery was full of spirit!

Multi hues and figures much
All there on the canvas, or brown paper, blue
All there on the birch bark too
Back to the old stories told
In the land where the ancestor roll
In the land where that spirit lives old

Colour so flash…across the canvas told
Stories of creation and how the people roll
The spirit beings and bears
Xray vision, oh so bare!

A movement you created through art
Grandfather of contemporary Aboriginal Art
You painted the canvas and the gallery beholds
Upon their white walls you showed
An ancient culture painted by a shaman on his ancient homeland
Stories of the land, sky and water too
Complex inter-celestial beings sat across from me to!
That Indian thang! of supernatural beings
Visit our people and bring
Teachings to us to share somehow

You choose the paint
As the paint must
Tell the words of old stories told
Tell the words of land and water as they hold
They hold our stories and ancestors too
Land and water beings all over this place
They connect us to above and below
Ahhhhhhhhhhh….to behold.

Paint the words of those underworlds
Paint the words of those aboveworlds
Paint the words of those supernatural beings
They harken to you to show their appeal
To show they are real
To show they bring gifts with them
For us to live in a certain way

Who will sway?
And listen to land.
Who will sway?
And listen to water.
Who will sway?
And listen to song bird sing.
I swayed so long ago and now I begin.

Turquoise blue you paint the sky
Turquoise blue the being crawled
Turquoise blue that healed so many
Uplift, uplift to the land of plenty?

The land of plenty? What is that?
Have we seen that upon our land?
What happened really? I want to know.
From the north to those ugly schools you go
I learned your story through books
I loved your work through books
I heard people talk about their Norval encounters

The stories that I only heard
Of a man named Copper Thunderbird
Of a man whom walked so gently
Of a man who painted endlessly
Of a man who shook the artworld
Of a man who showed them so

Some got it, what this man has shown
I am altered from how yo shone!!
Shine Norval shine in the land of peace
You!!! up there now…with all those…
Entities?

What shall I call all those worlds?
Swirling, twirling and swirling so
All around us… there you go
The man Norval who created so


Agawa Petroglyphs
Ojibway
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Sunday 24 October 2010

Animal Unity (1978) Norval Morrisseau

Animal Unity
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Acrylic on canvas, 50" x 108", 1978
________________________

 - Published in the book, "The Art of Norval Morrisseau" (Pollock 1979) - Pg. 158 -
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Self Portrait - Devoured by His Own Demons (1974) Norval Morrisseau

Self Portrait.
Devoured by His Own Demons
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Acrylic on canvas, 68" x 57", 1974
________________________

 - Published in the book, "The Art of Norval Morrisseau" (Pollock 1979) - Pg. 113 -
________________________________ 

Symbols of the Opposite (1977) Norval Morrisseau

Symbols of the Opposite
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Acrylic on canvas, 68" x 49", 1977
________________________

 - Published in the Art of Norval Morrisseau (Pollock 1979) - Pg. 139 -
________________________________ 

 

Friday 22 October 2010

Three Generations (1990) Norval Morrisseau and The Academy (2008) by Kent Monkman

Three Generations
Norval Morrisseau
1990, acrylic on canvas - Dyptch - 96" x 48"
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This brilliant painting is available to purchase NOW through Principal Morrisseau art dealer Bryant Ross of Coghlan Art in B.C.. Isn't it astonishing that art like this is still available on the open market? Imagine Picasso's like this floating around 3 years after he passed away. This is a museum piece. No doubt about it.

Friends came into town recently from Vancouver and England. I let them use my Art Gallery of Ontario membership card and told them to check out the multi-panel, "Man Changing into Thunderbird" by Morrisseau. I also told them to check out the Rembrandt of Cree artists, Kent Monkman's, portrayal of Norval in a long house, entitled, "The Academy".

The Academy
Kent Monkman
72” x 108”, 2008, acrylic on canvas
Collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario

The Academy
 - (Detail of Morrisseau / Vermeer) -

When one great artist paints another great artist into his painting, it says a lot about both artists.

My friends agree with me. Morrisseau's mural in the main foyer of the AGO is the single most dynamically charged artwork at the AGO. So much of the art in the AGO is wonderful in so many ways, including Monkman's awesome work of art, yet nothing rivals Norval's work for pure Shamanic power. i.e. Spirit Medicine.

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Thursday 21 October 2010

Merman Is The Lord And Ruler Of The Water Of The World (1992) Norval Morrisseau

Merman Is The Lord And Ruler
Of The Water Of The World
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Acrylic on canvas, 90" x 48", 1992 , Titled verso by the artist's hand
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 - Exhibited at the G8 retreat, Huntsville/G20 summit, Toronto, June 2010 -
On view NOW at the Norval Morrisseau 2010 Retrospective
 - Oct 16 - Nov 20, 2010 -
Kinsman Robinson Galleries, Toronto
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"Merman the anchient (sic) half man and supernatural being who is the ruler of all the waters of the world in his protection and power to the individual, both by water and land, was a sought-after protector of the Ojibwa Indian shaman; for it is said that the merman own[s] the element of water in itself very powerfull (sic) to be channell (sic) to that power etc..."

Norval Morrisseau  

Isn't it interesting that this aptly titled painting found its way into the inner circles of World power. Given Norval's "Merman" statement, isn't it profoundly appropriate that they used it? Morrisseaus appear in the Halls of Power because Morrisseau paintings are Powerful....and that's putting it mildly.

Read more about the G8/G20 summits, the Retrospective and Morrisseau in a new article published by Woodland Artist, Mark Anthony Jacobson HERE

Check out a 1968 Merman painted by Norval Morrisseau.

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The Visionary (1977) Norval Morrisseau




Artist With Thunderbird Vision (The Visionary)
 - Norval Morrisseau -
70 inches by 50 inches, acrylic on canvas, 1977
 ____________________

Christie's caught up as £30m forgeries
send shock waves through the art world
German police hold three suspects after works sold
through leading auction houses are exposed as fakes
________________

Panic is spreading through the art world following the discovery of forgeries among major 20th-century paintings sold in recent years by leading auctioneers and dealers worldwide, including Christie's in London.

More than 30 paintings, thought to be by artists including Max Ernst, Raoul Dufy and Fernand Léger, have been unmasked as forgeries, the Observer has learned. The fakes have duped leading figures in the art world into parting with at least £30m.

Four of the paintings have gone through Christie's, including forgeries of Ernst's La Horde, estimated at £3.5m and eventually sold to the Würth Collection, and André Derain's Bateaux à Collioure, sold for £2m. Six paintings were sold by the leading German auctioneer, Lempertz, one for £2.8m. The forger's strategy appears to have been to create compositions that would relate to the titles of documented works whose whereabouts are not currently known.

Dealers and collectors who have recently acquired works by the artists involved "are shaking over this scandal", one insider said. "They are in a panic over whether their paintings are also forgeries. Everyone's taking a second look." The panic is so acute that collectors are even seeking refunds on unquestionably genuine works.

One expert describes the forgeries as "gold standard". They cover many styles and include works by Heinrich Campendonk, the German Expressionist. Most are in the style of the particular artist, rather than a direct copy. All are believed to have been painted by a German forger over the past 15 years. Police are now investigating whether that forger is Wolfgang Beltracchi, 59, an artist from Freiburg, aided by his wife, Helene, 52, and her sister, Susanne, 57 – women described as "great charmers". All three are now in police custody. Two men are also being investigated.

The deception involved an invented story about inheriting the paintings from the sisters' grandfather, Werner Jägers.

Dr Nicholas Eastaugh, of Art Access and Research, a leading British expert in scientific analysis of paintings, told the Observer that he has seen four of the forgeries and conducted extensive tests on three. The results confirmed that they contain pigments not available when they were supposed to have been painted. One of the paintings, Campendonk's Rotes Bild Mit Pferden (Red Picture with Horses), was sold in 2006 by Lempertz for a record price.

Eastaugh emphasised that the duped buyer has given him permission to discuss the case. A painted sketch on the back of the canvas – suggesting that the artist was trying out another idea – is also a forgery. Clues to a painting's provenance, or history, are often found on the back of a painting. Many of the forgeries have fake labels from galleries or collections to give a further authentic touch, suggesting past exhibitions. The Christie's Ernst is said to bear a false label, "Flechtheim Collection", which aroused the suspicions of the distinguished historian and Flechtheim biographer, Ralph Jentsch. Labels on other works suggest they are from the "Jägers Collection".

One duped auctioneer said: "It's significant that these paintings have been through the sale process before they got to me. They must have been sufficiently convincing."

The buyer of the Campendonk was Trasteco, a trading company in Malta, which is now claiming back the purchase price. The firm is one of two collectors represented by Friederike Gräfin von Brühl, a German lawyer at K&L Gates. She said: "For the art world, this is a big scandal. Everyone is shocked."

Christie's London – which handled alleged forgeries that include Campendonk's Girl with a Swan, sold for £67,000, and another painting that fetched £344,000 – said: "We take any doubt surrounding authenticity extremely seriously and are investigating the matter fully."

Dalva Alberge
The Observer
Oct 17 2010

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Wednesday 20 October 2010

Norval Morrisseau proteges Ritchie Sinclair and Brian Marion (1994)

Norval Morrisseau chose Brian Marion and Ritchie Sinclair to seed with enhanced artistic vision over extended periods of time. I have now known Brian for more than three decades. I consider him my beloved brother. I know that Norval loved and appreciated him too.

Ritchie Sinclair and Brian Marion
The Omega Centre - Toronto - 1994
In front of a Stardreamer original entitled., The Offering"
_____________________

Brian is a profoundly intelligent artist with commanding composition skills that present core teachings of Spirit within a traditional framework. I find his work exhilarating. He has so much to offer. He is also a fine teacher. Unfortunately he struggles with diabetes related illnesses, including phantom pains from the loss of a leg last year.

In spite of that he paints on. I witnessed him working on a new 8' x 4' canvass the other day. I hope one day people realize that saturating the Woodland art market with Morrisseau fakes has been extremely detrimental to Woodland art and artists in general. Brian Marion is a case in point. How sad that greed so often gets in the way and worthy people suffer because of it.

This whole fiasco of the fraudulent mis-use of Norval Morrisseau's identity leads me to consider the merit of removing identity from those who don't deserve it because of their atrocious acts.

One receives an Indian "name" because they deserve it...and are it. What if in like kind, for crimes against humanity, monsters lose their identity entirely,

For example, what if nine years ago "the People" had removed Bin Laden's identity from society, adding him to a list of revoked names? He would henceforth be known only as K-1454. In Ontario we have current news headlines about a predator confessing to his sickening acts. He receives notoriety and a thrill because of it. Monsters like this should go down in history as mere numbers and letters without meaning, or family. Excommunication from humanity is unfortunately, a reality.

Should people who steal the identity of others pay with losing their own identity? I don't think so. Its too high a price to pay. Still...It makes one consider the value of identity and the ruthlessness of stealing something so sacred from another.

I look forward to the transparent humanity of the future and an end to power-tripping in all its forms. We can be better than that.



The Meeting Place Mural
1994 - First International Pow Wow - Skydome - Toronto
Thunderbird School of Shamanistic Art
Ritchie Sinclair and Brian Marion
_____________________


"The aboriginal-inspired mural by Star Dreamer (aka Ritchie Sinclair), consisting of 28 linked canvas panels, was created as the centre piece of the lst Toronto International Pow Wow at the Skydome in Toronto in l994. Ritchie occupies a unique place in the Canadian pantheon of artists as the Scottish - lineage protege of Ojibway shamanistic artist Norval Morrisseau. The mural depicts the native legends of the formation of North America , contrasted with Toronto's contemporary architecture, like the CN Tower." It is 20th century Canada's version of the native totem pole," says Ritchie. It includes a cameo contribution by fellow Morrisseau protege, native artist Brian Marion and remained on view at BCE Place to mid-April. "

Artfocus Magazine
Spring 1997

THE MEETING PLACE CONSISTS OF 28 SEPARATE, STRETCHED, CANVASSES, WHICH TOGETHER, CREATE A UNIQUE ARTISTIC INSTALLATION - THE MURAL TOOK 5 YEARS TO COMPLETE AND HAS BEEN PAINTED WITH A VARIETY OF ACRYLIC MEDIUMS THAT REACT SPECTACULARLY UNDER DIFFERENT LIGHTING CONDITIONS - THE MURAL, IN FACT, WILL GLOW IN THE DARK, TO REVEAL THE MAGNIFICENCE OF THE GREAT SPIRIT, SYMBOLIZED.


THE ARTWORK ITSELF STRETCHES 21 FEET ACROSS AND STANDS 16 FEET IN HEIGHT THE CANVASSES ARE SQUARE, YET THEY ARE HUNG IN A DIAMOND-LIKE FASHION SYMBOLIZING. THE 4 DIRECTIONS, THE 4 SEASONS, THE 4 STAGES OF LIFE, THE 4 RACES, THE 4 KINGDOMS IN NATURE, THE 4 BODIES OF SENTIENT LIFE, THE 4 ELEMENTS, AND THE 5TH ELEMENT SYNTHESIZING THEM ALL... THE GREAT CREATIVE SPIRIT.


Note: The mural entitled, "The Meeting Place" and the painting above entitled, "The Offering" are amongst art that was stolen by Randy Potter Auctions of Port Hope colluding with Centron Self Storage of Toronto.

Stardreamer

Friday 15 October 2010

Norval Morrisseau's (1983) Androgyny and Prime Minister Stephen Harper



Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands in front of Norval Morrisseau's painting "Androgyny" during the start of the cabinet shuffle at Rideau Hall in Ottawa in October 2008. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

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Shaman with Medicine Powers (1978) Norval Morrisseau

Shaman with Medicine Powers
 - Norval Morrisseau -
acrylic on canvas, 1978, 71" x 41"
___________________

(Portrait of Brian "Little Hummingbird" Marion)
__________



2009 Endorsement of Ritchie Sinclair
written by Brian Marion
Filed in Otario Superior Court - August 2010
___________________


Wednesday 13 October 2010

Loon & Fish (c. 1970s) Norval Morrisseau

Loon and Fish
- Norval Morrisseau -
SILKSCREEN; SIGNED, TITLED AND NUMBERED
- Available through Waddingtons -
______________________

Thunderbird (1987) Norval Morrisseau

Thunderbird
 - Norval Morrisseau -
Acrylic on canvas, 36" x36",1987

 - View "Thunderbird" at the Norval Morrisseau 2010 Retrospective -
Oct 16 - Nov 20, 2010
 - Kinsman Robinson Galleries, Toronto -
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Sunday 10 October 2010

After the Bear Dance (1997) Norval Morrisseau


After the Beardance Ceremony
The MicMichael Canadian Collection - 1997

Norval Morrisseau performed a Beardance Initiation on Sept. 28 1997. It took place on the grounds of the McMichael Canadian Collection in Kleinberg, Ontario. Protege, Ritchie Stardreamer Sinclair and spiritual son, Gabe Weekan Vadas, took part. This film shares what transpired after the Beardance. The following passage describes this film and provides a transcript of Morrisseau's address to those present.
_______________________

Copper Thunderbird completes the sounding of the drum. Bear is laid to rest. Stardreamer expresses his appreciation to the Grand Shaman and returns the Kodiak Bearclaw that Copper Thunderbird presented to him when Stardreamer accepted Bear as his Shamanic guide seven years before.

Copper Thunderbird places his hand on Stardreamer's forehead to ordain him. He places the ceremonial headdress of the Grand Shaman on Stardreamer's head to empower him.

Assistant Shaman, Weekan, thanks Bear who is then placed at Morrisseau's feet. Morrisseau removes Weekan's Shamanic headdress and places it on Bear. He gifts Stardreamer's Bearclaw amulet to Weeken and then speaks to those gathered....

Thank You people

The Blessing is free. We won't charge you

We don't generally do this in public.

I am a Grand Shaman. This is like when the bishop comes to his chuirch and gathers his priests to ordain.... the ones that he is going to ordain.

He's a Shaman...
Mind you this guy's a Bear and we are going to ordain the Bear as well.

Our people a long time ago... had these types of ceremonies that weren't too public.

And the reason why they did it... it was an earth renewal ceremony. Everything renews itself because we are too polluted. Everything that we breath. Everything that we eat. The only thing I guess that's not polluted yet is our Spiritual environment. But it is our duty to maintain and keep that environment intact... if we ever get it polluted.

So each individual person that views the ceremony can interpret it in his own way...to give him an idea

Its the same thing as a person who goes to see a picture inside the art gallery. It is nice to sell those pictures, but yet the real purpose is for someone to look at the paintings.

I don't know how many of you people ever have Technicolor dreams but in that Technicolor world that we have inside each one of us... every time you look at my pictures or the colors,... the colors especially... not the images...it brings out that Indianess in you...

For we are only here to bring out more Indianness.

Norval Morrisseau
1997 Beardance Ceremony at the McMichael Canadian Collection

Saturday 9 October 2010

Quail Family (1973) Norval Morrisseau

Quail Family
Norval Morrisseau
1973, acrylic on artist board, 33" x 22"
______________________

One autumn I watched Norval climb up a country fence and deliver a lengthy speech to thousands of turkeys. They were far off behind a hill in the distance. You couldn't see them except for a few heads bobbing here and there until Norval climbed the fence.

With an exhilarating haste the hoard descended down the hill at breakneck speed to greet Copper Thunderbird. I was shocked. Norval laughed. They all seemed very interested in what he had to say so he gave it his best shot. His speech included a climax and an epiphany.

Norval was euphoric about the episode for days. The turkeys had responded to him and he appreciated it immensely. Why? He knew where they were going and he felt that he had assisted in providing them safe passage. He told them not to be afraid. That they had done well. That they were beautiful and strong. That they were all great souls. That people would be better because of their gift. He told them they were special turkeys and he knew that because he was there speaking to them.

He put his great big heart around them and blessed each of them. And he kept blessing them through the Thaknsgiving holidays. Years later he would mention them as if to say, "Those were the good old days...the days when I talked to the turkeys." By sharing his sweet memory of that moment he continued to bless their short existence over and over again.

Most people eat turkey on Thanksgiving. Norval talked turkey

Stardreamer

_______________________________


In a 1984 interview Norval brings up the turkeys to make a point about attitude and attention:


Once I lived out in the country where I had to walk two miles to get to a telephone. So I was walking along feeling sorry for poor old Norval and I passed a turkey farm. There must have been over 3,000 turkeys on either side of the road kept back by fences.

As I walked by, I began to be aware of the sound of one turkey after another as I walked and they conversed. I thought of St. Francis and wondered if he really talked to the animals or was it the vibrations from this magnetic force within us.

The more I thought of that the more I forgot about anything else. I just had a chat that made me more aware that we are just a molecule within a molecule in the body of God. That allowed me to forget my own radiance and that's what I'm talking about. The thoughts just stop coming into your consciousness. That's what I mean about my painting coming from somewhere else.

I'm just as simple as anyone else - and maybe more so and there isn't anything that I can't do. Wherever your imagination goes your mind is sure to follow.

Norval Morrisseau
1984

Wednesday 6 October 2010

The Great Rabbit Nanabozho (c. 1969) Norval Morrisseau

The Great Rabbit Nanabozho (Untitled)
Norval Morrisseau
acrylic on paper, 24" x 16", c. 1969
___________________________


Through contrast beauty is experienced and consciousness realized. This is the Shamanic path which Norval identified as the "razor's edge".

Without evil, compelling acts of conscience from us, we remain in stasis. Merely ignorant angels. Divine, yet passive, spectators. Where would Christ be without the contrast? I relished studying Buddhism as a science but I don't see the love in it. Love is action. Turn water into wine. Bathe your lover's feet in essential oils. Heal the sick. Rage against shady priests and businessmen. Dream the dream and share your Visions.

Do something....Do anything of the sort and you can count on contrasts appearing on the distant horizon.

Norval Morrisseau was the quintessential Pisces. It comes as no surprise to me that this "grand gesture" of lower astral plane Shamanism would arise from the bowels of the Earth.

Envision the great horned snake, laden with its pouch of magic medicine (karma) purified by the brilliant light (bite) of Copper Thunderbird who "shines like seven suns". Without the snake there is no medicine. There is no need for the "Superman within".

This is the high drama that authentic Shamanism creates. It's so Norval.

This battle between fake and authentic is the trickster in action. This is the shape-shifter transforming reality. This is the great teacher, MC, artist, co-creator and founder of the Grand Medicine Lodge doing its thing. This is the Great Rabbit. Host to the heavenly host. Have a peek at Norval's epic mural, "A Separate Reality". Do you see Nanabozho running the show?


Nanabozho Pictograph
Bon Echo

We must wrap our wings round this forgery duality. When Jesus said, "Get thee behind me Satan".he didn't mean, "Die Satan". He just wanted him put in his place - and so it is with forgers and forgeries. We want them put in their place.

The imminent result of all this is that our special friend, who we are so incredibly proud of, will take his place beside the other great masters, just as Gabe predicted on National TV in 2006.

A large part of the credit for this emergence must go to the moths attracted to Copper Thunderbird's light. By their acts of indiscretion they have incited a potency I call "the Norval Morrisseau effect".

Two years of my life have been devoted to ensuring Norval's work lives on. Far more years of effort and concern on the part of Bryant, Gabe and many others.

As an example, Don Robinson comes to mind. The many battles this man has fought few know about though we all know about the unwarranted abuse he has taken for a decade. The bravery and fortitude of mind to pick himself up after that and create multiple Expert Reports and testify is commendable. He deserves medals, but for his effort and for associating with me he got sued. Not once but twice!

This is the Norval Morrisseau effect. People going beyond the call of duty and common sense to assist. New people with strength of soul arrive with increasing regularity. The truth is coming out. Norval Morrisseau's brand of Shamanism is unstoppable. To a Grand Shaman "Truth" is a very BIG word.

Stardreamer

Monday 4 October 2010

Mother and Child (c.1992) Norval Morrisseau

Mother and Child
Norval Morrisseau
acrylic on canvas

This stunning painting is available as a limited Edition serigraph.

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Friday 1 October 2010

The Legendary Omish-shoos (1971) Norval Morrisseau


The Legendary Omish-shoos
Norval Morrisseau
Ink and acrylic on paper, 15x20inches, 1971

View "The Legendary Omish-shoos" at the
Norval Morrisseau 2010 Retrospective
Oct 16 - Nov 20, 2010
Kinsman Robinson Galleries, Toronto
______________________________

Great artists are seers who have the ability to reach both ahead and back in time while still maintaining relevance to an everchanging present. Norval Morrisseau was a supreme visionary whose legacy will endure forever.

Greg A. Hill