b. 1943, Sandy Lake Reserve, Ontario
d. 1978
First Nations Affiliation: Cree

Along with his teacher and mentor, Norval Morrisseau, Carl Ray was one of the early progenitors of the Woodland School style which marked a resurgence and revitalization of Indigenous culture in central Canada in the late 1960s through the 1970s. A self-taught painter and printmaker, Ray was introduced to the style while working for Morrisseau on the important mural commission for the Indians of Canada pavilion at Expo '67 in Montréal, and became a critical figure as a teacher to younger artists at the Manitoulin Arts Foundation summer workshops. From a traditional familial background of medicine men, Ray's early work illustrated Cree legends and spiritual knowledge, growing more personal in subject as he grew in confidence. Before his untimely death, Ray received numerous commissions and grants from the Department of Health and Welfare, and Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, in addition to the Canada Council.

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

Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
Fort Francis Public Library, Fort Francis, Ontario
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Manitoba Centennial Corporation, Winnipeg, Manitoba
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
New College, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario
Red Lake Fellowship Centre, Red Lake, Ontario
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario
Sioux Lookout Public Library, Sioux Lookout, Ontario
Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Thunder Bay, 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

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

Davis, Angela E. The Grand Western Canadian Screen Shop: printing, people, and history. Regina, Saskatchewan: Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery, 1992.

Hill, Tom and Elizabeth McLuhan. Norval Morrisseau and the Emergence of the Image Makers. Toronto, Ontario: Art Gallery of Ontario, 1984.

McLuhan, Elizabeth. Contemporary Native Art of Canada: Silk Screens from the Triple K Co-operative. Toronto, Ontario: Royal Ontario Museum, 1977.

Patterson, Nancy-Lou. Canadian Native Art: Arts and Crafts of Canadian Indians and Eskimos. Don Mills, Ontario: Collier-Macmillan Canada, 1973.

Ray, Carl and James Stevens. Legends of the Sandy Lake Cree. Toronto, Ontario: McClelland and Stewart, 1971.

Southcott, Mary E. The Sound of the Drum: The Sacred Art of the Anishnabec. Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press, 1984.

Stevens, James R. Sacred Legends of the Sandy Lake Cree. Toronto, Ontario: McClelland and Stewart, 1971.