Anne Riley facts for kids

Anne Riley is a talented artist who creates many different kinds of art. She is part of the Slavey Dene people from the Fort Nelson First Nation, and she also has German family roots. Anne was born in Dallas, Texas, in the United States. Today, she lives and works in Vancouver, Canada.

Many of Anne's artworks explore her identity as an Indigiqueer person. This term was created by the Cree artist TJ Cuthand. It is often used by Indigenous artists like Oji-Cree storyteller Joshua Whitehead. The term is connected to Two-spirit, which is an important identity and role in many Indigenous cultures. Through her art, Anne uses Indigenous ways of learning. She focuses on learning by doing, helping communities, and caring for nature. Anne earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 2012. She also received the City of Vancouver Studio Award from 2018 to 2021.

Amazing Art Projects

Anne Riley has worked on many interesting art projects. These projects often share important messages.

Drift: Art and Dark Matter

From 2021 to 2022, Anne worked with other artists like Nadia Lichtig and scientists from SNOLAB. They created an exhibition called Drift: Art and Dark Matter. This project was both a special art residency and an exhibition. It has been shown at places like the Agnes Etherington Art Centre and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery.

A Constellation of Remediation

From 2017 to 2019, Anne and her friend T’uy’t’tanat-Cease Wyss worked on a public art project. It was called A Constellation of Remediation. The City of Vancouver asked them to create it. For this project, they planted special Indigenous gardens on empty gas station lots. These gardens helped to clean and heal the soil. It was a way to bring back the land's natural health.

Every Little Bit Hurts

In 2015, Anne had an exhibition called Every Little Bit Hurts at the Western Front Society in Vancouver. For this show, she made an art piece called that brings the other nearly as close as oneself. It was a sculpture made from 62 plaster molds of her hands holding each other. She also created two blue drawings on the gallery wall. These drawings were part of a performance Anne did, which was also shown in a video at the exhibition.

Time_Place_Space: Nomad

In 2015, Anne went to a special art program in Melbourne, Australia. It was called Time_Place_Space: Nomad. There, she explored new ways of making art, including performance art. She looked at how being silent can be a way to show strength and resilience.

Art Shows and Exhibitions

Anne Riley's art often talks about the experiences of Indigenous peoples. Her work also explores ideas like decolonization and healing for people and the land. She often includes themes about two-spirit people and recovering from difficult experiences.

Here are some of the places where her art has been shown:

• 2021: Drift: Art and Dark Matter at Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia.
• 2020: Her words are Not Vanishing as she leaves her howl inside us at ArtSpeak, Vancouver, British Columbia.
• 2019: Spill at Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia. As part of this show, Anne and T’uy’t’tanat-Cease Wyss taught a workshop. They showed how their A Constellation of Remediation project worked at the UBC farm.
• 2019: This Land is Lonely for Us at Satellite Gallery, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Banff, Alberta.
• 2018: If the river ran upwards at Walter Phillips Gallery, Banff, Alberta.
• 2017: Pōuliuli, West Space, Melbourne, Australia.
• 2015: Every Little Bit Hurts at Western Front, Vancouver, British Columbia.
• 2014: 600 Campbell at Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia.
• 2012: She was the main curator for the show Now What It Never Was. This show was at the Visual Arts Center at The University of Texas at Austin.

Published Writings

Anne Riley has also written articles and texts about art and Indigenous experiences.

• Anne Riley wrote a piece called “líndline (Where Rivers Meet)” for the book “ALMANAC.”
• She wrote an article called “Įladzeeé: Pulse in the Wrist: Indigeneity and the Work of Emotional Labour” for MICE Magazine in 2016.
• In 2016, she wrote about her experience at the Time_Place_Space: Nomad residency for the Canada Council For the Arts.

Awards and Support

Anne Riley has received several awards and grants to support her art.

• 2018–2021: She received the City of Vancouver Studio Award.
• 2017: She got a grant from the British Columbia Arts Council. This helped her learn from artist Laiwan.
• 2016: She received a grant from the Canada Council for the Arts for an international artist residency.
• 2015: She received another grant from the Canada Council for the Arts for her residency in Melbourne, Australia.
• 2014: She received a grant from the British Columbia Arts Council to work with artist Laiwan again.