Jason Baerg on Abstraction

Jason Baerg views abstraction as a process that is essential to communication. Rock art, designs on ancestral objects, language and movement are all examples of abstraction practiced in Indigenous cultures since time immemorial.

The title of this work, Oyasiwewina, means “the law” in nêhiyawêwin (the Cree language). The mîkiwahp (tipi) embodies nêhiyawak governance. Each apasoy (pole) represents a specific cultural value. Here, a ladder draped with a painted and laser-cut canvas references the mîkiwahp using the materials of contemporary art.

Oyasiwewina is part of the exhibition Storied Objects: Métis Art in Relation, on view until July 2.