DECEMBER 17th, 2022

We are thrilled to present a group of paintings that span the last 15 years by Gigamei Kukwits. The subjects of Kukwits’s paintings range from narrative to symbolic and to purely formal play, all unified by his intention to push the boundaries of expectation.

Gigaemi Kukwits is of Capilano, Tlingit, and Kwakwaka’wakw heritage. He holds a Musgamakw Dzawada’enuxw (Kwakwaka’wakw) seat in the Big House, his name deriving from his grandparents of the Dzawada’enuxw, and appointed by his uncle, Simon Baker of Capilano. At a young age, Kukwits was influenced by Elders who were trained professional artists. He also studied at the Vancouver School of Art (now the Emily Carr University of Art + Design), in 1967 to 1969.

The exhibition space exists and operates on the traditional and unceded territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), səl’ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations.