Rebecca Baird

A n I n t r o d u c t i o n t o
C o n t e m p o r a r y N a t i v e A r t i s t s i n C a n a d a

R e b e c c a B a i r d

b. 1954, Edmonton, Alberta
First Nations Affiliation: Cree

Rebecca Baird's early career is marked by her association with the notable Toronto artistic collectives Chromaliving and Fast Wurms. However, most important was her 1981 trip to Arizona and New Mexico, which stimulated her research into her own cultural ancestry and the history of colonization. Addressing and redressing these histories, Baird works in a variety of media, from painting on hide and installation, to constructions with found objects and braided sweetgrass with quillwork. She brings both a refined aesthetic sensibility and extensive scholarly research to her collaborations with her brother Kenny. Recognized with numerous awards by both the Canada Council and the Ontario Arts Council since 1983, Baird was artist in residence at the Canadian Museum of Civilization and the University of Toronto in 1993.

R E C E N T E X H I B I T I O N S

1996	Women and Medicine. Niagara Arts Company, St. Catherines, Ontario Altered States: Ritual of Exchange. Walter Phillips Gallery, Banff, Alberta Material Bliss. Justina M. Barnike Gallery, Toronto, Ontario
1995	Ground for Belief. Kloffer Gallery, Toronto, Ontario Selected Works. Chatham Art Gallery, Chatham, Ontario Basket, Bead, and Quill. Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Thunder Bay, Ontario
1994	Elements. Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Ontario A Love of the Land. The Homer Watson Gallery, Kitchner, Ontario RE-PUBLIC Installation. Sternberk Symposium, Czech Republic Sixth Native American Fine Art Invitational. Heard Museum, Phoenix, Arizona Fetish and the Shaman. Indianapolis Art League, Indiana
1993	Selected Works. The Station Gallery, Whitby, Ontario A Time Within the Memory. Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec Re-mapping: Tales of Desire. A Space Gallery, Toronto, Ontario The Power of Place. Legislative Building, Toronto, Ontario First Nations '93. Woodland Cultural Centre, Brantford, Ontario
1992	Canada's First People: A Celebration of Contemporary Native Visual Arts (travelling) New Territories: 350/500 Years After. Les Maisons de la Culture, Montréal, Québec Beyond 1992: Experiments in Cross Cultural Collaboration. A Space Gallery, Toronto, Ontario C(o)vert. The Station Gallery, Whitby, Ontario INDIGENA. Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
1991	Memory and Subjectivity. Garnet Press, Toronto, Ontario (travelling)
1990	Changers: A Spiritual Renaissance (travelling) The Salvage Paradigm. YYZ Artists' Outlet and The Wynick/Tuck Gallery, Toronto, Ontario Subjective Memory. Garnet Press Gallery, Toronto, Ontario

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

The Canada Council Art Bank, Toronto, Ontario
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
Canadian Native Arts Foundation, Ottawa, Ontario
Chatham Cultural Centre, Chatham, Ontario
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, 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

Gurney, Janice. The Salvage Paradigm. Toronto, Ontario: YYZ; Wynick/Tuck Gallery, 1990.

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.

McMaster, Gerald, and Lee-Ann Martin, eds. INDIGENA: Contemporary Native Perspectives. Vancouver, British Columbia: Douglas & McIntyre, 1992./ INDIGENA: Perspectives autochtones contemporaines. Hull, Québec: Musée canadien des civilisations, 1992.

O'Rourke, Debbie. "Confrontation and redemption: Installations by three First Nations artists." Espace 33 (1995): 35-39.

Tétrault, Pierre-Léon, Dana Alan Williams, Guy Sioui Durand, Alfred Young Man, et al. New Territories: 350/500 Years After: An Exhibition of Contemporary Aboriginal Art of Canada. Prefaces by Robert Houle, Tom Hill. Montréal, Québec: Ateliers Vision planétaire, 1992.

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