Events
Frankie McDonald: Lawa7
November 1, 2022 – February 28, 2023
Urban Screen, Wilson Arts Plaza
Emily Carr University of Art + Design
8am-9pm daily
The Libby Leshgold Gallery is pleased to announce the launch of Frankie McDonald's video work Láwa7, as part of the City of Vancouver’s Public Art Program for Emily Carr University’s Urban Screen. The screening will commence on November 1, 2022.
Láwa7 is the tale of a young woman named Nahani who goes down to the fishing rock but is unable to catch anything except garbage. She is then greeted by a magical salmon named Láwa7, who transforms the young woman into a salmon and takes her on a journey through the river. This story calls attention to river pollution, fish farms, and oil spills while interpreting traditional Northwest Coast formline into the 3D animated environment. Originally conceived for a senior animation class at Emily Carr, Láwa7 has grown into a deeper exploration of systemic issues, allowing the artist to think through her relationship to the environment and the damaging effects it faces as a result of colonialism.
Frankie McDonald is an artist of two BC nations— St'át'imc Nation on her father’s side and Stó:lō Nation on her mother’s side. During her studies, Frankie’s focus was in 3D Animation where the nature of her work has been exploring different ways of telling Aboriginal stories and bringing awareness to environmental issues. Her work is imbued in Indigenous design, culture, and language. She has been the recipient of multiple funding awards including the St'át'imc scholarship, the Indspire Bursary, the Irving K. Barber award, the ECU Aboriginal Award Bursary, and the National Indian Brotherhood Trust Fund Award. Since graduating from Emily Carr in 2020, Frankie has been focussing her interest on teaching the St'át'imc language to children through 3D animated shorts, a project she is deeply passionate about and for which she has gained funding through a First People’s Cultural Council grant.
The Urban Screen, located on the north-east wall of the Wilson Arts Plaza, is an initiative of the City of Vancouver’s Public Art Program in conjunction with the Libby Leshgold Gallery at Emily Carr University of Art + Design. To date, the program has included the work of Barry Doupé, Dana Claxton, Marina Roy, Cole Pauls, Diyan Achjadi, Laiwan, Kandis Williams, and Liz Knox. The screen operates daily from 8am-9pm.
