Public Talk with Indigenous Knowledge Holder: Owisokon Lahache
Join the Indigenous Studies and Community Engagement Initiative (ISCEI) and the Indigenous Studies Program for a public talk presented by their 2023 Knowledge Holder, Owisokon Lahache.
Where: 3480 McTavish, Room 203
When: Thursday, March 16th, 2023, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Speaker bio:
Owisokon Lahache is a Haudenosaunee Mohawk Artist & Matriarch of the Turtle Clan, living in Kahnawake. Her first passion is painting, believing that art can speak volumes and that telling our own stories is important for our children and for other Peoples to gain a better understanding of who we are, about what makes our Spirits sing.
Owisokon has been fortunate to learn Haudenosaunee stories, which are gems that have been passed on through the generations. She loves the spiritual symbolism and personal significance that highlight the complexity of our deeply cultural stories and other aspects of Iroquois life. She believes it is important to visually record these for the future generations to learn from, to examine and celebrate.
Since 1987, Owisokon's works have sold to clients from Brazil, China, Germany, Mexico, France, Belgium, Peru, Italy and across Canada & the USA. Her work has won awards by jury including 'Best in Show' and 'People's Choice Award' on both the national and international art scenes and recently exhibited at la Biennale di Venezia in Verona Italy; Imago Mundi, and BACA Biennial in Montreal. Recent Commissions include two 1% contract art awards and painting art performances for Deloitte, Indigenous Tourism and Business Celebration Gala, and Kruger Energy.
She is currently working in her Turtle Bay Art Studio where she meets with clientele who wish to learn about the Haudenosaunee culture. Her aim is to create more public art and interactive art pieces in conjunction with a digital storytelling component to share her Haudenosaunee culture.
More on ISCEI and the Knowledge Holder Series:
The ISCEI promotes the growth of the Indigenous Studies Program in the Faculty of Arts, and aims to serve as a nexus for Indigenous scholarship and community-building and to facilitate communication and collaboration both across units at McGill, as well as in partnership with Indigenous communities.
ISCEI provides support for the Knowledge Holder Series, developed within the Indigenous Studies Program. This annual series invites an Indigenous Knowledge Holder to spend a week at McGill to share their work through academic events, community presentations, and interactive workshops.
Both ISCEI and the Indigenous Studies Program extend their thanks to the Willie and Libby Zimmering endowment, whose generous gift helps to support the Knowledge Holder Series.
