Jeneen Frei Njootli

Closing keynote performance
of the 2020 Feminist Art Fest
presented by NWIA

Jeneen Frei Njootli is a 2SQ Vuntut Gwitchin artist who was raised by her lesbian moms outside of the Yukon. In her award-winning interdisciplinary practice, she uses media such as performance, sound, textiles, collaboration, workshops and feral scholarship. A co-creator of the ReMatriate Collective, she is invested in Indigenous sovereignty, decolonization and is concerned with the production, dissemination and embodiment of images.

Frei Njootli holds an MFA from the University of British Columbia, a BFA from Emily Carr University and has been living and working as an uninvited guest on unceded Musqueam, Squamish, Sto:lo and Tsleil-Waututh territories for a decade. Her works and performances have been held in many territories, both locally and internationally at places such as Yukon Arts Center, The Kwanlin Dun Cultural Center,  BUSH_gallery, The Contemporary Art Gallery (Vancouver), The Vancouver Art Gallery, Western Front, The Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery, The National Gallery, Ottawa Art Gallery, Remai Modern, Paved Arts, aceArt, Art Space (Peterborough), Gallery TPW, Art Space (Seoul), Encuentro, Kamloops Art Gallery, imagineNATIVE, Sydfest, among others.

Check out her book my auntie bought all her skidoos with bead money.

Talkback moderated by: Megan Feheley 

About NWIA

Established in 1993, Native Women in the Arts (NWIA) is a not-for-profit organization for first nations, inuit, and métis women and other indigenous gender marginalized folks from diverse artistic disciplines who share a common interest in culture, art, community and the advancement of indigenous peoples. NWIA was founded in 1993 by arts leader Sandra Laronde (of the Teme-Augama-Anishinaabe). For over 25 years, NWIA has worked to support, promote and develop indigenous artists in diverse practices from communities across Canada and internationally.

NWIA presents unique artistic programming while developing, supporting, and cultivating indigenous practices in the performing arts, literary arts and publishing, visual arts, customary arts, and community development projects. NWIA’s influence has been felt in communities across canada. We nourish and transform our communities by pursuing the highest standards of artistic excellence, and by offering exceptional development opportunities to emerging artists.