Chooutla: Diana Bartelings, Cathie King

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Chooutla

Representative

Diana Bartelings

Chooutla was an Anglican residential school in Carcross, YT. It became a place where first nations children lost all they were. They lost their language, their sense of belonging and their very identity. In 1972 it closed down and became an alternative school. In 1979 it was returned to the First Nations people who as part of their healing process chose to dismantle it.

Techniques: Machine appliqué, ink & crayon, rust dying, hand dying thread painting, machine quilting.

Note: In the original design I had the road leading out of the picture to return up at the school. Having taken a design workshop with Vivian Kapusta at Quilt  BC in Penticton, I learned that once the eye followed the road out of the quilt it might not make it back in to see the rest of the piece. So I did change up the 

design to have the road curve up to the school.

process photo

Process: I enjoyed having a partner but we did not find the time to work together as we thought we would. We did connect and share photos and I did bring my piece to her work so she could see what I was doing but time to get together did not present itself until the very end when we decided to ship our pieces together. There were some great ideas that flowed between us and I think I would have made a few different choices had I clearly understood all that she was doing a little earlier on. As it is though, I feel our two pieces fit well together and we think of them as one piece of art.
                        




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Chooutla

Abstract

Cathie King

The Phoenix rising is representational of the First Nation people rising above the attempted assimilation and societal collapse, and the rebirth of language and culture.  The destruction of the Chooutla School helping in the healing.

The word fragments tell the "Milestones" of the Anglican Indian Residential School in Carcross YT.

Process Photo

Techniques: Photo printing on fabric 
(photo shop pictures), fusible appliqué, 
thread painting, machine quilting, fabric painting 
(word fragments at top).

Credit: Native artist 
Richard Shorty - 

Phoenix image used with permission.