%C2%A9 Christi Belcourt
It's a Delicate Balance, 2021
Christi Belcourtexpand_more
Acrylic on canvasexpand_more
Gift of funds from Andy and Meg Ubel in honor of Mia's Docent Class of 2015expand_more 2021.30
On View in Gallery 301expand_more
For most Indigenous communities, all life— plants, animals, insects, microbes— are kin, and to be treated with respect and care. Most of the living beings that Belcourt depicts here are currently threatened, endangered, or at the edge of extinction in Mia’s backyard, the Upper Midwest. Each of these species is critical for the balance of our ecosystem, interconnected to all of life, including humanity.
Belcourt paints these creatures as if she were beading them on hide, starting at the bottom and drawing upon designs and motifs found Michif beadwork. Each dot is painted individually, representing a single bead. The composition of the painting is a seamless whole. Blossoming flowers and wisps of greenery are intricately outlined in the color palette and style of Michif floral imagery, a part of an aesthetic system and of way of life made possible through careful observation of the natural world.
Details
- Title
- It's a Delicate Balance
- Artist Life
- Métis, born 1966
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2021.30
- Curator Approved
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© Christi Belcourt