Robert Houle : Magnet Set

"Seven Grandfathers" Set of glass dome magnets.

The "Seven Grandfathers" artwork on display within the AGO Walker Court, reflects the seven sacred teachings in Anishinaabe culture and is intended to be a healing work.

"As an Anishinaabe artist, I wanted my Saulteaux maternal language, culture and history to play an important role in defining my response to Walker Court and its institutional history. Spiritually, concepts of respect and sharing form the foundation of an Anishinaabe way of life, built around seven sacred teachings - gifts from the grandfathers. The seven ceremonial drums made specifically for this space symbolize visions of nature and the perception and traces of memory. There are seven drums for dream songs about the presence of animals and other totemic creatures of the ancestors. Each grandfather is characterized by an animal and a teaching." - ROBERT HOULE


Robert Houle. Seven Grandfathers, 2013. Oil on canvas, each of 7 drums: 20.3 cm. Purchased with the assistance of the Martinsell Fund, 2016. © Robert Houle

New Grandfathers Animal & Teaching (Gifts) Characteristics: in order from left to right in the package:

Grandfathers
EAGLE (ME GE ZÉE)
BEAVER (UH MIK)
BUFFALO (MÙSH KOODA PEZHÉKE)
WOLF (MAHÉEN GUN)
TURTLE (SHIN GAH DÁ ME QUAUN)
BEAR (MUH QUÁH)
TRANSITION FIGURE OF THE WOODLANDS (MA SAH BEH)

Gifts
LOVE (SAH GEE WÁ WIN)
WISDOM (NEB WAH KÁH WIN)
RESPECT (ME NAH DA NE MO WIN)
HUMILITY (TAH BUS SÁ NIN DE ZOO WIN)
TRUTH (DAH WA WIN)
COURAGE (SOON GE DAÁ WIN)