Annie Pootoogook, Norval Morrisseau redux

Howdy!

This kind of sucks. You’d figure that the Canadian art world is socially aware, slightly progressive and forward thinking. But obviously it ain’t. If you’re too lazy to click on the applicable links, over the weekend the Ottawa Citizen reported that Annie Pootoogook was homeless and five-months pregnant. While I don’t think Mr. Morrisseau was ever pregnant, the stories of him selling drawings dirt cheap on the street when he was homeless are legend. I presumed that stuff like that no longer happened here. Obviously I was wrong.

Annie Pootoogook, image courtesy weloveyouso.com
Annie Pootoogook, image courtesy weloveyouso.com

How difficult would it be for someone like Patricia Feheley, Pierre Francois Ouellette, Clint Roenisch, Jessica Bradley, Katherine Mulherin, Jamie Angell, Joyce Yahouda, Pierre Trahan, Nick Tedeschi, André Laroche and Louis Joncas, Simon Blais or any of the numerous other gallerists, art dealers and art gallery owners who all have a roof over their head and/or were at the Sobey Art Award Gala when Annie Pootoogook won the big prize to get together to not only buy her drawings, but authenticate them as well and then more importantly, get her help. Whether that’s something as simple as buying her drawings so that she can afford an apartment, or finding some professional who knows the ins and outs of addiction.

2 thoughts on “Annie Pootoogook, Norval Morrisseau redux”

  1. wow, another edgy post from old Zeke.
    what makes you so sure that these private individuals are the ones to properly step in? What about Marc Mayer himself? Why isn’t he down there on Rideau street bringing her packs of cigarettes? and what exactly does the artworld have to do with it? what about her boyfriend? I won’t deny that the native population has and continues to go through serious hardships, but to single out some commercial gallery owners seems entirely off base and plain wrong. What about rehab centres in Ottawa specifically? actually, the people quoted in the article were community workers of that ilk, so yeah, for the time being maybe it is up to those professionally trained to help her get off the street and back on track.

  2. Well, isn’t this what the art world is about anyways?
    Rip-off artists by cutting into deals between artists and clients. I try as much as possible to bypass galleries and pay my art directly in cash to the artists.
    Geeezzz…..

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