Sask. queer Métis artist’s beaded landscape series celebrates pride

Pride Month is often filled with over-the-top celebrations of identity, complete with parades, parties, and endless rainbow merchandise.

But one Saskatchewan artist has been quietly celebrating her queer Métis identity through creating mixed media landscapes.

“I spent a lot of my youth like waiting for permission to express myself and be who I am. And I just want people to know they don’t need anyone’s permission to be who they are and be proud of who they are,” said 26-year-old artist Aleksi “Ann” Anseth.

Anseth studied art at the University of Saskatchewan for five and a half years, striving towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts before the pandemic. But following lockdown, she decided to take a step away from her studies and break out on her own. And in Saskatoon is where she found herself, and her community.

“That was kind of when I started getting more comfortable with my own identity and exploring it a little more,” Anseth explained. “So in terms of Pride, I’ve got a strong connection to Saskatoon.”

Anseth identifies as a lesbian cis-gendered woman, something she’s known about herself since she was 15.

“My parents, I think they knew before I told them, so they’ve always been pretty supportive and accepting,” she recalled.

But it wasn’t until recently she felt comfortable enough to celebrate her queer identity.

What started as a proposal piece for a mural for the City of North Battleford, turned into a series of multimedia art pieces, combining traditional paint on canvas with Métis beadwork.

“I wanted to almost, in a toxic-ly positive way, kind of promote some joy and some of the aspects about being a queer person, that I really want to celebrate and share,” Anseth clarified. “So that kind of gives permission, especially to youth, to celebrate and share.”

Through depicting Saskatchewan locations like North Battleford and Prince Albert, she has memorialized places that hold special meanings for her. Between the brush strokes and intricate details of the skylines, you notice a rainbow shimmer made of glass beads.

Anseth can trace her Métis roots all the way back to Batoche, Saskatchewan, known for being the site of the historic Battle of Batoche during the North-West Resistance of 1885.

“My grandmother was born and (was) married right in the Caron home at Batoche, which is still standing, you can go visit it. A lot of my ancestors would have been navigating this space, and I wanted to kind of tie my personal history into the series that way,” remarked Anseth.

Listen to Anseth on Behind the Headlines:

Growing up as a “white-passing” woman, Anseth acknowledges her privilege within society. But she never wanted to shy away from her Métis roots, and sought to explore more of her family’s history.

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“The root of my artistic practice, I would say, is play. So as I learn about these things, I want to play with them and honor the tradition they’re coming from, but also make them my own,” she said, while gazing over the many pieces she’s created for this series.

This month, Anseth will begin her Pride mural in North Battleford, on the back wall of The Chapel Gallery, facing the North Saskatchewan River. She says members of the public will be welcome to pick up a paintbrush and help create a collaborative Pride mural for the community.

Dates for the mural are to be announced in the coming weeks.