About — Andrieana Montgmery

Hi ! My name is Andrieana Montgomery, I am an artist, art teacher and mom.

My spirit name is Dancing Butterfly, I am Nehiyawi Cree from One Arrow First Nations on Treaty 6 territory on my mothers side. My family is from the Ukraine on my father’s side. I am eagle clan. I currently reside on the traditional territory of the Annishinaabe on Dish with One Spoon territory.

I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts with honours from Brock University and a Bachelor of Education in Visual Arts from Nipissing University. For the last 17 years, I have been teaching high school art and pottery. I have been inspiring and engaging youth to create their own artwork and find their passion in creating art. I hope that my passion and love for art will inspire others to see the world differently.

Working with the community and building relationships has been important in my life. I have sat on the Board of Directors for 2 years at the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington. I was a Coordinator of the Kids Outdoor Arts Festival for over 6 years in Bowmanville. The festival was a free event for kids by kids around the arts. I have also been involved in Oshawa Folk Arts Council.

I have been working to create artwork with deep meaning and a connection to my culture. I love both of my cultures and where I come from. As a proud Indigenous woman, I wanted to create art with my culture in mind. I have been fortunate to grow up in the Ukrainian community and have strong connections to dance, art and the food. I have had to discover my Indigenous side on my own and it has been a journey of discovery. It is amazing what I have learned through listening to stories, reading books, and attending events (including ceremony). I was taught that my spirit was remembering everything, not merely learning for the first time. My artwork speaks to the essence of my spirit, the land, the things I have learned and more learning I need to do.

Behind the Art

My artwork speaks to the beauty and knowledge that all plants hold. Plants are medicine that can help us with vitamins, nutrients, medicinal purposes and more. Plants are helpers. Some Indigenous people have been disconnected from plant knowledge through the Canadian government’s assimilation process, the Indian Act and residential schools. We have been disconnected from various traditional teachings about the land. Many of us are finding our way back to those teachings. On my journey of learning, I have come to realize I know very little about plants, trees, and flowers. The flowers in my paintings are simple and blank to represent that absence of knowledge that plants hold. My family has lost this in only a few generations. It is my purpose to bring traditional knowledge back to my family and children. My painting represents all of this to me.

There is so much energy and spirt within nature that we love to enjoy. I love being on the land with all the beauty of nature. The graffiti and expressive backgrounds represents this combination of beauty and energy of nature. The colour of the background represents the knowledge that plants possess. All the beauty and knowledge is there to learn.

I hope that when people view my artwork they feel the vibrancy of the colours and energy of the flowers. The beautiful flowers are done in an Indigenous and Metis style and connect visually to tradition in beadwork.