Follow The Light

36X48 inch, acrylic on canvas

Original Artwork by Jim White

I painted this after doing some research into Indigenous canoes and learning more about the history of Indigenous people travelling into the Rocky Mountains to hunt deer, elk, mountain sheep, and other game. They would spend time in the mountains and then return to the lower elevations as the seasons changed.

I’ve spent a lot of time exploring the Canadian Rockies, and they’ve always been one of my favourite places to paint. But with this painting, I wanted to add another layer to that landscape, to recognize the Indigenous people who were here long before modern Canada and who travelled, hunted, and lived in these mountains.

I feel that Indigenous people are often given far less credit than they deserve for helping shape the country we have today. For me, including that history in the painting is a small way of acknowledging their connection to this land.