Archived Exhibits: Through the Eyes of the Cree - The Art of Allen Sapp

"Late for the Meeting"

Allen Sapp began painting in the early 1960s, but his work was not widely known until 1968 when the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon sponsored a hugely successful exhibition. By 1974, his work was receiving wide-spread national and international renown. His awards include election to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (R.C.A.A.), the Saskatchewan Order of Merit, and the Order of Canada.

Through his paintings, Mr. Sapp shows us daily Cree life in the 1920s to 1940s as he remembers it when he was growing up. His art demonstrates how his identity and his life are deeply rooted in Cree culture, thereby inspiring other First Nations artists. It crosses cultural barriers by helping others to understand Cree life.

The paintings and artifacts in “Through the Eyes of the Cree” speak to both the past and the present. They depict Cree traditions, knowledge and wisdom, family and community life, and the activities of men and women, grandparents and children.

The exhibition is being shown at two locations:
The First Nations Gallery at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum.
The Cumberland Gallery at the Legislative Buildings.

Click here to visit the Virtual Museum of Canada exhibition.

“Through the Eyes of the Cree” it is a Centennial project created by the Allen Sapp Gallery and the City of North Battleford, with assistance from the Office of the Treaty Commissioner and Department of Canadian Heritage.