October 8 to November 14, 2026

List of available artworks soon

The Guild is proud to present Exchanges: A Showcase of Indigenous Fine Crafts from the Northwest Territories. The Northwest Territories are known for a rich and diverse material and visual culture. Twenty-seven distinct First Nations groups, Inuit, Métis, and non-Indigenous Canadian peoples call this region home. The artists and makers presented in Exchanges contribute to the artistic and cultural communities of the territories while drawing from its natural splendor. 

Exchanges marks the beginning of a collaboration between The Guild and NWT Arts and a first co-presentation of artists from the Northwest Territories. This exhibition facilitates an exchange in which local artists, artisans, and their admirers can observe and experience making techniques specific to the Northwest Territories. Amongst the items on display there will be caribou and moose hair tufting from the Southern Dhecho region, the 5-petal rose motif, hide tanning and quillwork and beading. The ecosystems of the Northwest Territories require artists to work with region-specific natural materials and execute these artforms through skills that are physically demanding and require delicate care of each natural element (material). 

This selection of works highlights art practices and ways of making that incorporate knowledge passed down through familial lines, time, and intercultural exchange. This exhibition celebrates the wearable and decorative artworks by multi-disciplinary artists Alisa Blake (Gwich'in Metis and lnuvialuit) and Catherine Blondin (Dene); sweeping, narrative tapestries and delicate adornments by bead and hide workers Cheryl Fennell (Dene), Cynthia Pavlovich (Gwich’in ), and Sheena Yakeleya (Dene); and representations of fauna by sculptor John Sabourin (Dene).

Opening Night : Thursday October 8 from 5:30 p.m.

BIOGRAPHIES

Alisa Blake works across a diverse range of mediums and materials, I blend traditional Indigenous techniques with contemporary artistry to create works that celebrate culture, identity, connection, and storytelling. My artistic practice encompasses intricate beadwork, wearable art, hide work, and one-of-a-kind creations, with each piece reflecting a deep respect for heritage while embracing innovation and creative expression.

Catherine Blondin is from Lı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ (Fort Simpson). Teacher by trade, nature-enthusiast, and talented Dene artist, Catherine is currently learning how to tan hides with Elders in her home community and is actively planning to learn Dene Zhatie in the near future through the Government of the Northwest Territories MAP program.  She is particularly inspired by the resurgence of Indigenous artists coming forward with new mediums, new techniques, and new materials. 

Cheryl Fennell is a Dene designer and Indigenous Futurist born in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, where light, land, cold, and creatures are her teachers. She designs where ancestral memory meets contemporary form, drawing from the north's living cupboard — qiviut, moosehide, fish skin, caribou, furs, biofabrics, land-harvested botanicals — materials that carry memory, relationship, and responsibility.

Cynthia Pavlovich lives in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. She learned to bead while growing up in Mayo, Yukon and began selling her work in 2019. She is a proud Gwich’in beader,Indigenous Business Consultant, Coach & Teacher. She is inspired by her grandmother and family; and hopes to carry and pass on the legacy of showing your love with beads. 

John Sabourin is an acclaimed multi-disciplinary artist originally from Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories. He graduated from the Fine Arts course at Arctic College and the Victoria College of Art in British Columbia.For the first several years, he worked exclusively with hand tools, cultivating his technique and feel for the stone. Although he now uses power tools, he still finishes each piece off by hand. John’s art is heavily influenced by the rich imagery of the Northwest Territories – its legends, stories and animals.

Sheena Yakeleya is a Dene Artist from Ford Good Hope and Tulita in the Sahtu Region. Sheena learned how to bead from the strong women in her life, but developed her own style, making beaded jewellery in 2012. Since then she has refined her techniques of preserving birchbark to use as a canvas for beading and porcupine quillwork.

Commissaire:

Katsitsanoron (Kat) Dumoulin Bush is a two-spirit Onkwehonwe and French Canadian from Oshahrhè:'on (Chateauguay), Quebec. They received their BA in Linguistics from Concordia University in 2017.

Kat has worked as an educator in Indigenous communities across Quebec; teaching mathematics, science, music, special education, and kindergarten in Tasiujaq, Eastmain and Kahnawake. They have also worked in radio as a DJ and music journalist. Katsitsanoron considers themselves a “non-disciplinary” artist and curator; using experiential learning as a principal medium to make artworks and exhibitions that pose and respond to questions about sexual, racial, and interpersonal identity. 

As an artist, they have completed residencies at Artexte (2023), The Banff Centre (2024), and Plug In ICA (2026). Their first curatorial internship was at daphne (2023), and the second the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (2024-2026). Kat is currently working at La Guilde and as part of a team of guest curators for the MAC's reopening exhibition. They are also currently a board member of the IPACC (Indigenous People's Arts and Cultures Collective) and MOMENTA biennial. 

Education:

Offered in conjunction with this exhibition, Fibers & Materials: Tactile Exploration is an education space and an invitation to learn through touch. Visitors can discover various media and artistic techniques used by Northwest Territories artists. This space  offers the experience to handle sample materials from animals, plants, and the earth to better understand their textures and unique characteristics. 

About Northwest Territories Arts

NWT Arts is a program administered by the Government of the Northwest Territories that helps connect customers with registered artists and retailers that carry authentic northern artwork. The program consists of opportunities for artists from all disciplines including media and literary arts, workshop series, and a registered logo that guarantees and protects the authenticity of Northwest Territories artistic practices.