NIPAT 20th Anniversary: skəlγap

March 25th – May 13th, 2023
Main Gallery

featured Nipat artists:

1st Year Artists: Dejerie Jackson, Sekoya Weaselhead-Kehewin, Lorne Olson, Denise Tom, Daisy Van Exan,
Amanda Wood      
2nd Year Artists:  Joanne Alexis, Ashleigh Andrews, Ashikeha Jack, Autumn Kruger, Shelia Lowe, Jasmine Nahbexie.

Invited Guest Artists: Dr. Cease Wyss, Maura Tamez, Amber WeaselHead, Bracken Hanuse Corlett, Eartha Good Striker, Shayna Dejarlais, Csetkwe Fortier, Tyrone Whitehawk.

NIPAT Faculty/Staff:  Renae Morriseau, Cynthia Jim, Karen W. Olson, Catherine Pierre, Dr. Michelle Jack,
Tracey Kim Bonneau.

(photo taken by Elise H. v.K.)

Article written by Dr. Michelle Jack

wayʼ x̌ast siɬkʷʕast (hello good day) The En’owkin Centre is pleased to announce our exhibition skəlγap in partnership with the Penticton Art Gallery, Ignite the Arts Festival and 2 Rivers Remix Society.  This event will be exciting to all as we return back to our annual in person NIPAT arts exhibition.  We would like to invite you all to come and visit with tea and bannock at our lively opening on Saturday March 25th, 2023.

Like the tributaries joining the main flow of the river we are excited to bring together current learners, faculty, and invited arts of the En’owkin Centre to celebrate the twenty year anniversary of the National Indigenous Professional Artist Training Program.  It is with full hearts that we present our works,  our voices heard, and words forage many connections throughout Turtle Island. We express our deepest gratitude for this valued partnership with PAG to provide space for our faculty, learners, and invited Indigenous Artists over the last two decades which has brought us together in service of our communities to elevate Indigenous arts.

The En’owkin Centre is an Indigenous post-secondary arts and cultural centre located on the Penticton Indian Reserve.  After many years we have an exciting new name change to include the word Indigenous to better reflect our peoples within the continent and the world.  The National Indigenous Professional Artist Training Program is one of many innovative programs housed at En’owkin.  This two-year certificate program includes storytelling, media arts, performance arts, painting, sculpture, installation art, creative writing and marketing.  The focus of the National Indigenous Professional Artist Training Program (NIPAT) is to protect and preserve Indigenous world-view and arts expressions within traditional heritage, utilizing interdisciplinary works with contemporary practice. The NIPAT program was developed to support the learning of how to “revitalize” traditional art forms into contemporary practice. It is a professional training opportunity that assists the artist to interpret traditional forms of art in today’s context.   En’owkin Centre also offers the Foundations in Indigenous Fine Arts program, in affiliation with University of Victoria.  Students focus on visual arts and creative writing, with an Indigenous worldview to collaborate and integrate many different mediums in their studies.

The mandate of our organization is to ensure syilx heritage, revitalization and preservation is at the core foundation, to develop and implement community-based programs, which focus on the needs of the community.  Our programs are supported through partnerships, grants, and donations as we are a registered charity. Our organizational foundational programs have tremendously served to enhance the NIPAT program.  We have partnerships with important institutions such as the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, and the University of British Columbia Okanagan. Without the foundational n’sylixcen – Okanagan Language programs and Indigenous Studies courses that foster these partnerships as well the NIPAT program would not have the rich resources to draw from for inspiration and incentive while “revitalizing” connections to many Indigenous communities, languages, and traditions throughout North America and the world.

We respect and support personal health and safety precautions and hope as many different sectors of our communities will come out and support this exhibition at your comfort level.

It is with joy and gratefulness we present these creative works through teamwork and partnership, limləmt. ♦