əyʔ skʷéčəl / Good day,
Lajah Warren tθə nə sné. Čsə éɫə sən əƛ̓ lək’ʷəniʔən. John Warren t̓θə nə mén. Deirdre Thomson t̓θə nə tén. My name is Lajah Warren (she/her). I am from lək’ʷəniʔən territory. My father’s name is John Warren and my mother’s name is Deirdre Thomson. I come from the Warren and Albany families from the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. I also have Cree, Ojibwa and Métis heritage from my Kookum’s family. On my mother’s side, we are Icelandic and English. While my formal education includes a degree in Indigenous Child and Youth Care, my passion has been utilizing expressive arts as a form of healing. Since I was a child, I watched my dad turn beautiful blocks of wood into carvings. This inspired me to see the spirit in my artwork and see art as a part of my healing journey. I am an interdisciplinary artist, with a focus on acrylic painting, poetry, and short story writing.
Art is ceremony. For Indigenous peoples, creation has always been a part of our daily lives. My artwork is a living representation of my healing journey. I love to create ‘imperfect art’ and create for the healing process instead of the final product. Being both an artist and a counsellor, I often find ways to turn my artwork into a therapeutic practice.
My Story
As a young Indigenous queer woman, I have found art to be my most sacred space to express and heal. I have not went to formal art school. I have not been taught classic art theory. Instead, I have prioritized learning about art through observing my father carve, being on the land, and having a strong sense of responsibility to share my story as a young Indigenous woman. My art practice started off as personal way of self-expression. However, I have seen the power of sharing about culture, story, land, and injustice through art. Art has become my form of revolution. It allows me to reach people on topics they may not engage with throughout he spirit rather than the mind. So when I started to sell my prints and engage in exhibitions, I decided that I wanted to curate an experience through my work. Often, this may mean sitting down with groups on an opening night of an exhibition and share about the stories of the piece. It may also mean sending small personalized stories and reflective prompts when selling my prints. I am not here to sell art. I am here to start dialogue. I am here to start a rebellion, showing people that Indigenous artwork is not only alive, but it is challenging the systems of oppression that never allowed us to take up space.
Contact
I'm always happy to connect about selling art, facilitating groups, doing talks, or just sharing a conversation about art.
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