Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 5

Sonny Assu
It was, like, a super long time ago that ppl were here, right?

2015

About the Item

The title "Interventions On The Imaginary" is a clear reference to Marcia Crosby’s essay, "The Construction of the Imaginary Indian", and situates itself within the realm of remix culture—as digital interventions onto works that contain the colonial gaze. These interventions participate in the growing discourse of decolonization, acting as “tags” to challenging the colonial fantasy of terra nullius and confronting the dominant colonial culture’s continued portrayal of Indigenous peoples as a vanishing race. With the insertion of ovoids, s-shapes and u-shapes into the images, both the landscape paintings and the Northwest Coast design elements are changed. The landscapes become marked by the spectre of Native presence and the NWC design elements, traditionally two-dimensional in appearance, acquire the illusion of depth through association with Western principles of perspective. I see these bold interruptions of the landscapes as acts of resistance towards the colonial subjugation of the First People. Through museum interventions, large-scale installations, sculpture, photography, printmaking and paintings, Sonny Assu merges the aesthetics of Indigenous iconography with a pop art sensibility in an effort to address contemporary, political and ideological issues. His work often focuses on Indigenous issues and rights, and the ways in which the past has come to inform contemporary ideas and identities. Assu infuses his work with wry humour to open the dialogue towards the use of consumerism, branding and technology as totemic representation. Within this, his work deals with the loss of language and cultural resources, and the effects of colonization upon the Indigenous people of North America. His work has been accepted into the National Gallery of Canada, Seattle Art Museum, Vancouver Art Gallery, Museum of Anthropology at UBC, Burke Museum at the University of Washington, Hydro Quebec, Lotto Quebec, The Audain Museum and in various other public and private collections across Canada, the United States and the UK. Assu is Liǥwildaʼx̱w (We Wai Kai) of the Kwakwaka'wakw nations. He graduated from Emily Carr University (2002) and was the recipient of their distinguished alumni award in 2006. He received the BC Creative Achievement Award in First Nations art in 2011 and was long-listed for the Sobey Art Award in 2012, 2013 and 2015. Assu is an MFA candidate at Concordia University, while he currently works and lives in South Surrey.
More From This SellerView All
  • Nuit Blanche à Dubai
    By Michel Piquette
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    It is the luminous colours of Michel Piquette’s works that first catch the eye. His chromatic circles that stir up vision take root in an aesthetic tradition a few decades old alread...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Digital

  • Nuit Blanche à Jodhpur
    By Michel Piquette
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    It is the luminous colours of Michel Piquette’s works that first catch the eye. His chromatic circles that stir up vision take root in an aesthetic tradition a few decades old alread...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Digital

  • Nuit Blanche à Barcelone 3
    By Michel Piquette
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    It is the luminous colours of Michel Piquette’s works that first catch the eye. His chromatic circles that stir up vision take root in an aesthetic tradition a few decades old alread...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Digital

  • Nuit Blanche à Delhi
    By Michel Piquette
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    It is the luminous colours of Michel Piquette’s works that first catch the eye. His chromatic circles that stir up vision take root in an aesthetic tradition a few decades old alread...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Digital

  • "The only thing more pathetic than Indians on TV is Indians watching Indians...
    By Sonny Assu
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    The title "Interventions On The Imaginary" is a clear reference to Marcia Crosby’s essay, "The Construction of the Imaginary Indian", and situates itself within the realm of remix cu...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Digital

  • Tell Chakotay that we'll brb
    By Sonny Assu
    Located in Montreal, Quebec
    The title "Interventions On The Imaginary" is a clear reference to Marcia Crosby’s essay, "The Construction of the Imaginary Indian", and situates itself within the realm of remix cu...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Digital, Archival Paper

You May Also Like
  • Gardenia - Limited Edition Print on Archival Paper, 2019
    Located in Bal Harbour, FL
    Gardenia, 2019 Giclée print available Cotton Paper. Acid and Lignin-free. 30 x 42 Inches Edition 1 of 10 + 2AP Price: $3,000 Limited Edition Print ___________ About the Artist Francisca Oyhanarte...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Cotton, Giclée

  • Papillion -Limited Edition Giclée print on Archival Cotton Paper, Abstract, 2018
    Located in Bal Harbour, FL
    Papillion, 2018 Giclée print on Archival Cotton Paper. Acid and Lignin-free. The painting is a limited edition Giclée print, created using high-quality archival cotton paper, ensuring its longevity and preserving the intricate details of the artwork. The central image of the composition features a butterfly, but instead of traditional organic patterns, it is formed by a captivating arrangement of geometric figures. The butterfly serves as the focal point of the painting, capturing the viewer's attention with its bold and vibrant colors. Shades of fuchsia, blue, orange, green, white, black, yellow, and light blue interplay harmoniously, creating a visually striking and energetic composition. Upon closer inspection, one can discern that the butterfly's wings are constructed using a meticulous arrangement of various geometric shapes. As the viewer's gaze explores the painting, they may notice that within the composition, there are additional elements arranged in the form of eyes. These eyes, composed of circles of varying sizes and triangles, lend an intriguing depth and surreal quality to the artwork. They evoke a sense of introspection and invite contemplation about the interplay of perception and reality. Papillion, 2018 Giclée print on Archival Cotton Paper. Acid and Lignin-free. 28 x 20.6 inches Edition 3 of 10 +2 AP Price: $2,400 Limited edition Signed by the artist __________ About the Artist Francisca Oyhanarte...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Archival Paper, Cotton, Giclée

  • Flow Interval #1
    By Dara Mark
    Located in Los Angeles, CA
    This unframed, signed, limited edition pigment print by artist Dara Mark exists in an edition of 25. Paper size is 24"h x 30"w with an image size of 20"h x 25.5"w. “New Mexico artist Dara Mark’s work possesses an ordered, calm beauty that sets it apart. Her patterned, abstract paintings take advantage of the flowing effects produced by her materials…and recall the natural world, which, like her paintings, is a grand mixture of the ordered and the random.” American Artist Watercolor Magazine Mark studied at Yale and the University of California at Santa Barbara. She has received artist grants from the Arts Councils of Missouri and California and the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission and has shown in museums including The Albuquerque Museum, Los Angeles Municipal Gallery and the Palm Springs Art...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Cotton, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigment, Digital...

  • Mystic Rituals 3
    By Brad Ellis
    Located in Los Angeles, CA
    This unframed, signed, limited edition pigment print by artist Brad Ellis exists in an edition of 30. Paper size is 46"h x 35"w with an image size of 40"h x 29"w. Brad Ellis is a Da...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Cotton, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigment, Digital...

  • Paradigm Red
    By Brad Ellis
    Located in Los Angeles, CA
    This unframed, signed, limited edition pigment print by artist Brad Ellis exists in an edition of 30. Paper size is 30"h x 24"w with an image size of 24"h x 19"w. Brad Ellis is a Da...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Cotton, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigment, Digital...

  • Escalera #1
    By Dara Mark
    Located in Los Angeles, CA
    This unframed, signed, limited edition pigment print by artist Dara Mark exists in an edition of 40. Paper size is 36"h x 24"w with an image size of 30"h x 18.5"w. “New Mexico artist Dara Mark’s work possesses an ordered, calm beauty that sets it apart. Her patterned, abstract paintings take advantage of the flowing effects produced by her materials…and recall the natural world, which, like her paintings, is a grand mixture of the ordered and the random.” American Artist Watercolor Magazine Mark studied at Yale and the University of California at Santa Barbara. She has received artist grants from the Arts Councils of Missouri and California and the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission and has shown in museums including The Albuquerque Museum, Los Angeles Municipal Gallery and the Palm Springs Art...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Cotton, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigment, Digital...

Recently Viewed

View All