Roger Simon Exhibition at Gallery On Queen

In collaboration with the family of Roger Simon, Gallery On Queen is honoured to present an exhibition of works by the late artist. The work will be on display at the gallery and online for viewing from July 16 to 29.

Roger Simon was a Mi’kmaq artist from Big Cove Reserve. He studied at George Brown College in Toronto and continued at the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design in Fredericton. His work combined traditional and contemporary ideas where he painted the faces of people from Big Cove and other reserves that impressed him. His ideas stemmed from Mi’kmaq legends and stories from the Elders and he interpreted ideas from his culture in new ways. Simon’s painting style was unique and his paintings are greatly appreciated by both the First Nations and non-aboriginal communities. In 1995, one of his paintings, “The First Car on the Rez” (oil on paper, 1993), was selected by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade’s Fine Art program for a permanent exhibition of First Nations’ art for the Canadian Embassy in Moscow, Russia. He passed away in January of 2000. His death was a great loss to art and culture, and especially to those who knew and loved him.

For more information on the exhibit, click here.