Warm Up To A Good Cause

“My people will sleep for one hundred years, but when they awake, it will be the artists who give them their spirit back.” - Louis Riel, 1885

“Art can be used as a vehicle to wake up people. And I use it personally. It’s kind of like, everyone likes my art - great! Now that I have your attention, I want to wake you up about this, I want to wake you up about that.” - Maxine Noel, 2020 In August, 2020, I was asked to interview Maxine Noel on behalf of Moccasins Canada. It was a thrilling and exciting experience to speak with such a dynamic woman.

Maxine Noel is a world-renowned Native Sioux artist who grew up on the Birdtail Reserve in Manitoba. She tells stories with her images: Indigenous stories, women’s stories, stories of the natural world. Her work is characterized by colourful female figures, gentle, flowing lines, and themes of living in harmony with people and nature. “Not Forgotten” is an image Noel created to raise money and awareness for the investigation of Canada’s missing and murdered Indigenous women. Her moving illustration depicts a female figure draped in feathers, surrounded by the spirits of those who are lost. "It wasn't an easy thing to create," Noel once told a Peterborough journalist. She spent many weeks researching, conceiving, and sketching the piece.

The artwork has since appeared on many items, from journals to mugs to t-shirts. All royalties are donated to Indigenous women’s causes.

The image is also featured on this beautiful faux-fur throw. Silky soft on one side, and fluffy winter-white on the other, this is a blanket that not only looks beautiful and keeps you warm, but serves to tell an important story — one we mustn’t forget.

As a residential school survivor, the design has a special significance for Maxine Noel herself.

“I have a special project that I’m proud of,” she told me. “It’s the one called Not Forgotten. That image - the one that raises money for the women - that has received such a response from all over the world. Women from everywhere have responded to that image.” Noel created “Not Forgotten” to represent First Nations communities across Canada. Each feather wrapped around the female figure carries a different symbolism:

• One feather features Sedna, the Inuit Goddess of the Sea, and native women of the north.
• The pale, red-tipped feather signifies women of the Métis.
• The geometric feather represents Indigenous women of central Canada and the east coast.

“I paint things that I hope people will see and understand and try to live by,” Noel said during our interview. “I try to deliver messages.”

The “Not Forgotten” blanket is a generous 127 cm x 152 cm (50” x 60”) and is made with soft, plush, polyester fibres. It’s a home accessory you can feel proud to own, and will keep you warm in more ways than one. Order yours today:

https://www.moccasinscanada.com/products/maxine-noel-not-forgotten-blanket

Proceeds of the "Not Forgotten” Collection help support the Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC), a voice for the missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada. Additional gifts, items, and clothing featuring the “Not Forgotten” image can be viewed here:

https://www.moccasinscanada.com/search?q=not+forgotten

In 2019, Maxine Noel was named to the Order of Canada. “My work is a vehicle to deliver messages. It’s what I do.” - Maxine Noel Click here to read the full interview with Maxine Noel:

https://www.moccasinscanada.com/blogs/news/to-me-art-is-therapy-art-is-a-form-of-meditation