b. 1935, Le Goff Reserve, Cold Lake First Nations, Alberta
First Nations Affiliation: Dene

Born Alexandre Simeon to one of the last hereditary chiefs on the Le Goff Reserve, the young Janvier was raised traditionally, and spoke the Dene language. Unlike many aboriginal artists of the era, he received formal training at what is now Calgary's Alberta College of Art, and then instructed for the University of Alberta Extension Department. Janvier was appointed advisor for Expo '67's Indians of Canada Pavilion, and was a member of the Professional Native Indian Artists Incorporated, or the 'Indian Group of Seven.' Renowned for linear non-representational works which combine his knowledge of abstracted work in beads and quills with modernist Western sources, from 1961 to 1977 Janvier manifested his politicization by signing paintings with his treaty number.  He represented Canada (with Betty Goodwin) in a Canadian / Chinese cultural exchange (1985), and created murals for the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Hull, Québec (1989).

R E C E N T   E X H I B I T I O N S

S E L E C T E D   C O L L E C T I O N S

Alberta Art Foundation, Government of Alberta, Edmonton Alberta
Alberta Indian Arts and Crafts Society, Edmonton, Alberta
AMACO Canada Ltd., Calgary, Alberta
Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa, Ontario
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
Cinader Collection, Toronto, Ontario
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Edmonton Public School Board, Edmonton, Alberta
Esso Emerging Artists Collections, Calgary, Alberta
Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta
Gulf Oil Resources, Calgary, Alberta
Helen E. Band Collection, Toronto, Ontario
Lester B. Pearson Collection, Ottawa, Ontario
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, Montréal, Québec
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
PetroCanada Collection, Calgary, Alberta
Saidye & Samuel Bronfman Memorial Collection, Montréal, Québec
Shell Canada Ltd., Calgary, Alberta
Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Thunder Bay, Ontario
Toronto Dominion Bank, Toronto, Ontario
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba

S E L E C T E D   B I B L I O G R A P H Y

"Alex Janvier: Negotiating the land." Canadian Art 11, no. 4 (Winter 1994): 79-80. [Review: Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan]

"The Art of Alex Janvier: His First Thirty Years, 1960-1990." Calgary Herald, 28 April 1995, p. C1, C2. [Review: Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta]

"Art 'a gift' for Canadians: Chipewyan artist reflects recurring history in painting for Museum of Civilization." Calgary Herald, 14 September 1993, p. D9.

Beglo, Jo Nordley. "Canadian art publishing, 1990-1993: An overview of monographs and exhibition catalogues." Art Documentation 13, no. 1 (Spring 1994): 19-26.

Canadian Museum of Civilization, ed. In the Shadow of the Sun: Perspectives on Contemporary Native Art. Hull, Québec: The Museum, 1993.

Cardinal-Schubert, Joane. "In the red." In Borrowed Power: Essays on Cultural Appropriation, eds. Bruce Ziff and Pratima V. Rao, 122-133. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1997.

"Ceiling art reflects Native history of loss, healing Canadian Museum of Civilization." Calgary Herald, 10 September 1993, p. F2.

"Cold Lake artist earns top job (Alex Janvier selected to paint abstract work on dome of Canadian Museum of Civilization)." Windspeaker 10, no. 14 (12 October 1992): 14.

Collins, Curtis J. "Janvier and Morrisseau: Transcending a Canadian Discourse." M.A. thesis, Concordia University, 1994.

"Controversial painter still breaking artistic ground: Alex Janvier." Windspeaker 12, no. 7 (20 June / 3 July 1994): 10.

Davis, Angela E. The Grand Western Canadian Screen Shop: Printing, People, and History. Regina, Saskatchewan: Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery, 1992.

"Fluffs & feathers." Artfocus 4, no. 1 (1995): 11-13. [Review: Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta]

"High Art: Alex Janvier reaches for the ceiling of the Museum of Civilization with new mural." Calgary Herald, 4 June 1993, p. C1.

Houle, Robert. "Alex Janvier: 20th-century symbols and images." Native Perspective 2, no. 9 (1978): p. 16-19.

Janvier, Alex. Contemporary Native art of Canada: Alex Janvier. Toronto, Ontario: Royal Ontario Museum, 1978. [Exhibition held at the Ethnology Department, ROM, January-February 1978]

"The land, the spirit, the power: Native artist Alex Janvier seeks cultural roots in his paintings." Calgary Herald, 27 September 1992, p. C1.

Lunn, Dr. John, et al. Canada's First People: A Celebration of Contemporary Native Visual Arts. Fort McMurray, Alberta: Syncrude Canada; Alberta Part Art Publications Society, 1992.

Martin, Lee-Ann. The Art of Alex Janvier: His First Thirty Years, 1960-1990. Essay by Robert Houle. Thunder Bay, Ontario: Thunder Bay Art Gallery, 1993.

"Morning star." Globe & Mail Metro Edition, 15 October 1993, p. C8. [Review: Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec]

Murphy, Donna R. "Artist Janvier nominated for prestigious (Sir Fredrick Haultain) award." Windspeaker 5, no. 8 (1 May 1987): 8.

Nemiroff, Diana, Robert Houle, and Charlotte Townsend-Gault. Land, Spirit, Power: First Nations at the National Gallery of Canada. Ottawa, Ontario: National Gallery of Canada, 1992.

"Remembering Christmas past: Artist's boyhood Christmases spent in residential school." Windspeaker 7, no. 40 (8 December 1989): Insert 12.

Review: Wallace Gallery. Calgary Herald, 2 March 1990, p. C1.

Warner, John Anson. "New visions in Canadian plains painting." American Indian Art Magazine 10 (Spring 1985): 46-53, 77.

Winnipeg Art Gallery. Treaty Numbers 23, 287, 117: Three Indian Painters of the Prairies. Winnipeg, Manitoba: Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1972. [Catalogue by Jacqueline Fry, curator of non-western art, exhibition of works by Jackson Beardy, Alex Janvier, and Daphne Odjig at the Winnipeg Art Gallery, 12 August 12 - 10 October 1972]