Wally Dion
PROJECT
Wally Dion is a Saulteaux (Plains Ojibwe) artist and a member of Yellow Quill First Nation. The Saulteaux are an Indigenous people residing in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and parts of Ontario, Canada. His grass quilts are a poetic meditation on ecology, ceremony and the invisible systems that sustain life on the Canadian prairies.
Dion started making his Grass Quilts series in 2022 during a residency at Wanuskewin Park in the Canadian city of Saskatoon. He intended to evoke the image of tall prairie grass and celebrate the return of bison to the Great Plains (the species had been driven to near extinction), but the series soon grew into a collection of flag-like quilts each representing an integral part of the Great Plains ecosystem: bison, sweetgrass, summer fires and the winter. The four transparent quilts, layered as they are, demonstrate the land working in harmony and make visible systems that are often invisible.
In his practice, Dion reimagines everyday objects like quilts as vessels of cultural memory and political commentary. He draws on the history of quilting as both a necessity for survival and a cultural expression. Traditionally made from pieces of clothing that were cut up and refashioned into new blankets, the patchwork style of quilts is evidence of the fabrics’ earlier uses. For many Canadian Indigenous peoples, quilts hold important cultural value and are often given as gifts or used as ceremonial objects.
The acquisition of this artist’s work is supported by Paul & Samantha Cross, and Anthony & Clare Cross
ABOUT
Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and now based in upstate New York, Wally Dion creates work deeply related to Saskatoon and Indigenous knowledge systems. He explores ideas of identity, power and Indigenous representation in the arts and engages with personal narratives and collective histories in a practice that spans painting, sculpture and installation. He holds a BFA from the University of Saskatchewan and an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. Dion’s work has been exhibited across North America, including at Boise Art Museum, Boise, Idaho (US); Ottawa Art Gallery, Ottawa (Canada); the Joan and Martin Goldfarb Gallery of York University, Toronto (Canada); and the Mattatuck Museum, Waterbury, Connecticut (US). His work has also been shown at the Libby Leshgold Gallery, Vancouver (Canada) and Remai Modern, Saskatoon (Canada).