Who was Norval Morrisseau?

Norval Morrisseau was an Indigenous Canadian artist. He pioneered the contemporary Indigenous pictographic style known as the Woodland school, and he was a prominent member of the Indian Group of Seven, formally known as the Professional Native Indian Artists Inc. Morrisseau’s paintings are characterized by thick black lines and vibrant colors, and they often depict segmented, X-ray-like animal and human bodies and plants that are interconnected. His works reflect traditional Ojibwe (Anishinaabe) spiritual themes in a contemporary style. At a time when Indigenous art had received limited recognition in the mainstream art space in Canada, Morrisseau created a distinctive artistic style and vocabulary, initiating a contemporary Indigenous art movement in the process. The exhibition of Morrisseau’s art in Jack Pollock’s Toronto gallery in 1962 marked the first display of Indigenous art in a contemporary art gallery in Canada, and all his paintings sold out on the first day. The exhibition helped him earn national recognition. After an exhibition in St.-Paul-de-Vence, France, in 1969—Morrisseau’s first solo international exhibition—he was given the moniker “Picasso of the North.” Morrisseau was awarded the Order of Canada in 1978 for his contributions to art.