Dr. Joane Cardinal-Schubert, Calgary

A member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts since 1986, Joane Cardinal-Schubert is also a writer, curator, lecturer, poet and activist for First Nation's artists and individuals engaged in the struggle for Native sovereignty. She attended The Alberta College of Art (1962-64; 1966-1967) and the University of Calgary, BFA (1977), Cardinal-Schubert's painting and installation practice is prominent for its incisive evocation of contemporary First Nations experiences and condemnation of the imposition of Euro-American religious, educational and governmental systems upon Aboriginal people. Cardinal-Schubert worked as assistant curator at the University of Calgary Art Gallery in 1978, and the Nickle Arts Museum, Calgary, Alberta, from 1979 to 1985. Her work is published in many catalogues, reviews and books; notably in such publications as Canadian Art- From It's Beginnings to 2000, Anne Newlands, Firefly Press; By A Lady Celebrating Three Centuries of Art by Canadian Women, Maria Tippett, Viking Press, 1992 and The Trickster Shift, Allan J. Ryan, UBC Press, 1998. She has been a lobbyist for the Society of Canadian Artists of Native Ancestry (SCANA) and has won numerous scholarships and grants, including the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Award in 1976, and the Banff Centre scholarship in 1983, 1988, and 1995. The Commemorative medal of Canada in 1993, and most recently the Queens Golden Jubilee Medal for her contribution to Canada as well as to her community. In 2003, the artist was granted an Honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.B), University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. Presently finishing a 3 year project - a sculptural commission for the Calgary Airport, the artist lives and works in Calgary, Alberta; continuing to address her family's history and place in Southern Alberta. Joane's coat is inspired by Turtle Wakes an opera about the Frank Slide.