Join artist James Harry for a talk about his most recent piece for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in collaboration with SOS Children’s Village BC. Harry is of Squamish (Swxwú7meshḵ) and European descent and is the recipient of the 2022 Griffin Art Projects Indigenous Studio Award. With Q&A led by Indigenous Curatorial Assistant, Emmett Hanly.

James Harry

James Harry began carving in early childhood with his father, Xwalacktun. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Emily Carr University of Art and Design, in 2014 and completed an internship in the United Kingdom in 2011 where he learned metal casting and taught Coast Salish sculpture, painting and drawing in Scottish communities. In 2021 Harry was awarded the BC Achievement award Fulmber Award in First Nations Art. Harry’s diverse portfolio includes cedar carvings, metal carvings, light installations and murals. Harry has created prominent large-scale public art pieces across the Lower Mainland for over a decade, including sculptures at YVR Airport and UBC, a 44’ totem for the Vancouver School Board as well as the major project "Xwemelch’stn" for the Cineplex Odeon in Park Royal in 2019 and a permanent installation for Whatcom Community College in 2022. Harry has been invited to Scotland and Germany and to the parliament buildings in Ottawa to represent Indigenous people of Canada and to address issues related to reconciliation. The Royal Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh brought James to the Commonwealth Games of 2014 to demonstrate the integration of his individual style with traditional Coast Salish art practices. James was also commissioned to create the gold, silver and bronze International Games medals in 2014.