October 2 to November 20, 2025
List of available artworks
La Guilde is proud to present the duo exhibition Masko Iskwewok (Bear Women), which brings together Atikamekw artists Eruoma Awashish and Meky Ottawa in an artistic dialogue shaped by years of collaboration and friendship. Through works combining painting, printmaking, and mixed media, the artists pay tribute to the women in their lives: mothers, aunts, sisters, and grandmothers. These figures inspire a new body of works that celebrate the strength, care, and resilience of Indigenous femininity.
The title Masko Iskwewok reflects the idea that the state of being, is to be bear. In Atikamekw, masko (bear) forms the root of mackwisiwin, meaning strength. A symbol of protection, care, and courage, the bear embodies the very qualities upheld by the women who are the backbone of their families. The bear-woman figure thus becomes the central inspiration behind their work.
Eruoma Awashish explores the connections between spirituality, ritual, and memory through large, colorful canvases depicting upright bears—symbols of power, playfulness, and resistance. Meky Ottawa, for her part, revisits family and cultural symbols through a vibrant palette.
As their first major exhibition as a duo, this collaboration offers a space for meaningful and heartfelt dialogue, celebrating the richness of contemporary atikamekw cultures and the collective power of the women who sustain and pass them on.
This exhibition is curated by My-Van Dam.
The artists would like to thank the Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec for their support.
Opening : Thursday, October 2nd at 5:30p.m., the artists will be present.