Description
David Liss is an independent curator, writer and artist from Toronto. Tom Wilson (born Thomas George Lazare | Tehoh'ahake) is a Mohawk musician, writer, and artist from Kahnawake. Adopted by a White family from Hamilton, ON, Wilson grew up without knowledge of his Mohawk heritage. His bestselling memoir Beautiful Scars chronicles Wilson’s late-in-life discovery of this heritage. A long-time fixture of the Canadian music scene, with bands such as Junkhouse and Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Wilson began painting in the late 1990s while trying to beat addictions. Despite not yet knowing of his Mohawk heritage, Wilson was instinctively drawn to Indigenous iconography. Since the discovery of his roots, Wilson has used painting to reconnect with his heritage and explore themes of resilience and survival in the context of settler colonialism and residential schools. His first exhibition was held in 2018 at the Art Gallery of Burlington (touring to the Grimsby Public Art Gallery in 2020). Mohawk, Warriors, Hunters & Chiefs includes work from the exhibition, as well as more recent never-before-seen art. Tom Wilson is a Mohawk performer, writer, storyteller, and visual artist from Hamilton, Ontario. A three-time Juno award winner, his memoir Beautiful Scars was a national bestseller and a CBC Best Book of 2017.