Visitors to the fourth floor of the Central Library are bound to see something different, and perhaps even unexpected for the next few weeks.

Sitting on a desk next to pails of acrylic paint and all manner of art supplies is a fully racked moose skull—one of the items in the Central Library’s newest Indigenous Artist in Residence Mackenzie Brown’s studio.

“Sometimes people come in and and they want to talk about ‘how do I get into painting?’ How do I paint?’ But then I have other patrons come in and they see the big moose skull, and they’re like, ‘where did you get that and how did you get inspiration to decide to paint it?'”

Brown, who also goes by her traditional Cree name of Kamâmak (which means butterfly), is a multi-disciplinary artist, a member of the Warrior Women singing and drumming group, and a child care expert and art therapy social worker.

Her painting work has been featured at Calgary’s BUMP Festival, Pump House Gallery, in Arts Commons, and has done commissions for the UCalgary Cummings School of Medicine and Arcadia Brewing.

Throughout her residency at the library until the end of May, she will be offering one-on-one virtual and in-person consultations with patrons, and will also be running several programs open to the public throughout that period.

The goal, she said, was to bridge the gap between cultures through that programming—including through her art, music and drumming, and specialized programming for youth.

“For kids, I’m doing a Turtle Island craft. I’ve been blessed with one of the Cree creation stories of how Turtle Island came to be, so I will infuse drumming, singing and storytelling. Then we’ll create a craft on cardstock paper of Turtle Island,” Brown said.

“For the youth, I’m doing quill boxes. So before we had beads, we had quills. I’m teaching about that story, how we used to dye our quills—and still do—and then creating a beautiful box. And then the adults were going to be doing beaded bookmarks.”

Celebrating Treaty 8 culture in Calgary

As part of her residency, Brown has been celebrating and connecting her Cree culture from the Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation, which is located in northwestern Alberta on Treaty 8 territory, with southern Albertans.

“Cultures often intermingled, and we learn from one another. There are certain customs from Cree culture that were borrowed or gifted to us from Blackfoot culture, for example, and there’s certain things in southern regions that were borrowed from the north,” Brown said.

“So I’m really excited to create those cultural connections.”

Already she has received questions from an inquisitive public about her paintings—some among the largest works yet produced in a Central Library residency studio, Brown said.

“I had a couple come from Ukraine just visiting here, and when they found out that I was Indigenous, their mind was blown. They had so many questions, but I’ll also get those kinds of questions from a domestic audience, too. Right from people in Calgary who maybe grew up in a time where it wasn’t talked about what Indigenous cultures mean, how diverse they are, and how different they can be, depending on where you’re from,” she said.

“I get asked questions about everything under the sun, but it’s always from a place of curiosity and trying to be able to connect.”

She said that she was also connecting her Child and Youth Care degree with her programming, and her background in doing art therapy, as a way to engage with the public.

“When I did my degree in child and youth care services, my main focus was utilizing artwork in a therapeutic manner with children: Youth and kids. So, I ran the Indigenous arts program at an organization that I worked for, and I would do aspects of art and play therapy,” Brown said.

“It has blended so beautifully in my life, because I think of myself as an artist, and I think of myself as a child and youth care worker.”

That connection of caregiving and the arts, she said, came from her mother, Matricia Brown, who also performs in Warrior Women and has worked to help connect school-aged youth with Cree culture and teachings.

“I was born into a family of creatives. My mom was a full-time and still is a full-time drummer, singer, storyteller, and bead artist. I grew up actually going into school systems with her as an official helper. We would do arts and crafts with kids in the schools and specific to Cree culture. Then, my dad, he is a creative in his own rights, but it falls into construction and welding. He used to make these amazing, large sculptures out of railway ties,” Brown said.

“I grew up in this very creative and musical family. I don’t think I ever really realized how special that was until I was older and was thinking’ I didn’t learn art in school, I didn’t learn art in university, I learned art as a kid.’ That’s really influenced my art practice now, and how I how I like to utilize art to really think back to my upbringing,” Brown said.

For more information on Brown’s residency, and how to book sessions with her or participate in one of her programming activities, see calgarylibrary.ca/events-and-programs/arts-and-culture/artist-in-residence.