Jackie Traverse facts for kids

Jackie Traverse (born September 30, 1969) is an inspiring Indigenous artist and activist. She is from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

About Jackie Traverse

Jackie Traverse is an Anishinaabe woman, specifically Ojibwe, from Winnipeg, Manitoba. She spent her early years in Winnipeg with her biological father. He encouraged her love for art by buying her art supplies.

Growing up was challenging for Jackie. Her mother passed away when Jackie was young. Her siblings were also taken from their family during a difficult time known as the Sixties Scoop. This was when many Indigenous children were placed with non-Indigenous families.

Jackie uses her experiences as an Indigenous woman from Winnipeg's North End to inspire her art and activism. She studied at the School of Fine Arts at the University of Manitoba. She graduated in 2009. Today, Jackie continues to work from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Jackie Traverse's Artwork

Jackie Traverse is famous for her paintings and animated films. She uses acrylic and oil paints, and also mixed media. Her art often shows Indigenous women, motherhood, and city life for Indigenous people. She also explores traditional Indigenous spiritual themes, like the Seven Grandfather Teachings of the Anishinaabe.

Jackie has also created art for schools in Winnipeg. Her goal is to inspire young people and teach them about Indigenous culture and ways of seeing the world.

Her paintings have been shown in galleries like The Wah-Sa Gallery and The Winnipeg Art Gallery. Both are in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

In 2009, Coca-Cola started a special program called the Aboriginal Art Bottle Program. It was meant to show Indigenous art at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Jackie Traverse's artwork was chosen from many submissions. It was displayed across Canada and in Vancouver during the Olympics. The chosen artworks were later sold to raise money for the Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund.

In 2016, Jackie released a colouring book. It is called Sacred Feminine: An Indigenous Art Colouring Book. Fernwood Publishing published it.

She also paints large murals. One of her murals is called Sweet Grass (Wiingash). She painted it in 2017. This mural was also part of a billboard project called Resilience in 2018.

Jackie's Films

Jackie Traverse has made three stop-motion animated films. Stop-motion animation uses still photos played quickly to make things look like they are moving. Her films are:

• Butterfly (2007)
• Two Scoops (2008)
• Empty (2009)

Her film Two Scoops tells a personal story. It shows a difficult moment from her childhood. This was when her siblings were taken from their family as part of the Sixties Scoop. The film has been shown at many festivals. These include the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival in 2008. It was also shown at the Imaginative Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, and Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2009. Two Scoops was even shown at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York City in 2008.

Jackie Traverse's Activism

Jackie Traverse is an important Indigenous activist. She strongly supports empowering Indigenous women in Canada. The strength of women is a common theme in her artwork. This theme also shows up in her work as an activist.

In 2015, Jackie started the Indigenous Rock the Vote movement in Winnipeg. This movement encouraged Indigenous people across Canada to vote. It aimed to change the historically low number of Indigenous voters. The movement inspired many to vote in the 2015 Canadian Federal Election.