A sample of Native Canadian Artist Carl Ray’s work. (Photo provided)

By DARLA MCCAMMON
Lakeland Art Association

If you have read my book, “Diamond Bait,” you will see my fascination with Canada and the “First Nation”  Ojibway Indian heritage of Ontario and other parts of Canada.

John and I were recently privileged to return to this spectacularly beautiful part of Ontario for a visit (and a little fishing). My next book, soon to be published, called “The Lobstick Tree,” another exciting adventure, is also focused on both the Native Ojibway and this dangerously fascinating country.

Always on the lookout for artistic things to share, I discovered work by an artist called Carl Ray who was born on a reserve in Ontario in 1943. He was of the generation of children that were uprooted from their homes and taken to strange homes and distant schools with the hope of assimilating them into the mainstream culture of Canada. His father died while he was away at school, so he decided to return at age 15 to take up the Indian way of life by hunting and trapping. Unfortunately, his education did not include those skills, so he had no success at making a living. He already had some talent in art but this was scoffed at by his First Nations’ community.

Ray decided to work the gold mines near Red Lake, so he again left the reserve, only to succumb to both tuberculosis as well as a very rugged lifestyle. He eventually recovered from the illness and met another native artist who gave him some encouragement and included him in a large mural project at a big expo.

His work gained recognition and the elders were less skeptical, so he began painting for a living but always his work depicted his native heritage with much symbolism. Soon, he was given a contract to provide illustrations for a book that had some commercial success.

It was not long before he made the acquaintance of others in the same genre of work and together they formed the Professional National Indian Artists Corporation. Ray’s work became noticed by the Department of Indian Affairs and many large commissions fell his way.

His work became famous enough that it was collected by large institutions and wealthy patrons. Ray, however, never strayed too far from his former rowdy behavior learned at the gold mine job, and, unfortunately, managed to get into a drunken stupor and a fight in which he was stabbed to death at Sioux Lookout in 1978.

You can learn more about Carl Ray and the “woodlands school” of influence on Indian art  by searching for Woodlands artists or Carl Ray.

Remember that your purchase of Diamond Bait at Amazon.com or BN.com will help the Animal Welfare League as part of the proceeds are designated for the local shelter.

Coming Up:

• Brenda Stichter art at Warsaw City Hall Gallery 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

For more information contact artist/author Darla McCammon at [email protected] or website.