Nelson’s Naomi Bourque and Jaymie Campbell from New Denver have been selected to participate in the 4th biennial Indigenous Fashion Arts Festival in Toronto.
The festival runs from May 30 to June 2, featuring over 100 Indigenous artists, designers, makers, brands, and pundits from Canada and worldwide.
The four-day event includes runway shows and a 70-vendor marketplace at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, along with the Fashioning Resurgence symposium and workshop series at Toronto Metropolitan University’s Student Learning Centre.
New Denver’s Jaymie Campbell is an artist and writer from Curve Lake First Nation and the designer behind White Otter Design Co.
Her work explores connection to land and culture through beadwork, writing, and visual arts. She is inspired by her Anishnaabe roots, the land, and her family.
Campbell has attended the IFAF four times, but this year she will be a participating market artist with her White Otter Design beadwork featured in the festival marketplace on June 1-2.
She said the event is an incredible opportunity to learn and be inspired by other Indigenous artists.
“It’s just such a beautiful community and it’s just so much fun. The coolest collaborations come out of it and there’s a lot of support and a lot of community building. You get to take in and appreciate all this incredible art and fashion and talent.”
After she gets back, Campbell will be moving into her new artist studio in Nelson, where people can purchase her designs and learn about her materials and beadwork techniques.
The studio will be hosting a grand opening in Nelson on July 20-21. More information can be found here.
Naomi Bourque from Nelson will present her collection on the festival runway on June 1.
This collection of ponchos is the imagining of what one might wear while harvesting traditional medicines, particularly those used by the Gwich’in people of the Far North, Naomi’s First Nation.
Bourque’s showcase will feature 10 Gwich’in Ethnobotany ponchos, which she explained is not only her First Nation but also medicine that’s broadly used across the continent.
“I just really tried to draw inspiration from plants that are used for food, medicine, shelter, etc., and translate that into something one might wear during this harvest.”
The ponchos are designed with functionality in mind, with thoughtful effort put into selecting plant dyes and design techniques to ensure they fit her inspiration.
“I really wanted to choose fabrics and textiles that are sustainable and organic, you know, lots of linen, lots of wool, cashmere, silk. It’s about the functionality, but it’s also about luxury in the end. I also wanted to be really size-inclusive. So many people could potentially wear these.”
This will be Bourque’s first IFAF event. Her ponchos will be featured in the runway show alongside around 24 other Indigenous fashion designers, and she said she’s excited to draw inspiration from her fellow Indigenous artists.
“I just feel like it’s going to be such a, almost like a family event to be with all these Indigenous artists. I’m hoping that it’s going to feel like home, but in the big city.”
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