Little Friends is proud to announce our 2019 Artist-in-Residence: Charlene Tootooosis.
Charlene is a traditional and contemporary Indigenous artist, culture adviser and early childhood educator. She will begin working on an art project with every Little Friends child in March. Charlene lives in Edmonton, but is originally from two reserves in Saskatchewan: Poundmaker and Little Pine First Nations.
During the program, Charlene will also introduce our children to the Cree culture and language, including simple phrases and words such as “tansi”, which means hello in Cree.
The finished art projects will be showcased at an art show in the preschool’s basement on April 27 from 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Charlene will be in attendance, along with members of the I.A.M (Indigenous Artist Market) Collective.
For more information about the I.A.M Collective, click here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/indigenous-arts-market-collective-edmonton-1.4802593
Little Friends’ acclaimed artist-in-residence program began in 2014 using money raised by our casino fundraiser. It is a unique initiative designed to connect our preschool with Edmonton’s vibrant arts community. Our previous artist-in-residents include Jason Blower, Justine Ma and Amanda Schutz.
