Ottawa will get a new team to oversee the promotion and development of local aboriginal art.
The city’s Arts, Heritage and Culture Advisory Committee (AHCAC) voted unanimously Tuesday evening in favour of creating a sub-committee to represent aboriginal interests in the arts.
The front-woman for the proposal, local Métis artist Jaime Koebel, pitched the idea, saying that public spaces in Ottawa lack visible modern-day aboriginal art.
“If you were to walk around the streets of Ottawa possibly the only art or art form that you might see is a couple of statues with maybe some loin cloths and bows and arrows shooting at a deer and scouts, and that is really how we are represented in the arts,” she said.
Some committee members not only voiced their support for the proposal, but also their interest in obtaining membership on the sub-committee.
“I think this is a brilliant idea. I can’t help but think that the richness and the depth and enlightenment that this kind of level of discourse could bring to our decision making is fantastic,” said AHCAC member, Catherine O’Grady. “It has my whole-hearted support.”
According to Koebel, the sub-committee will not only be beneficial for the aboriginal art community, but Ottawa at large, as it has the potential to advise on various other aboriginal issues and community projects.