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Recognized as the “Grandmother of Canadian Native Art”, Daphne Odjig’s accomplishments were many and she has left a lasting cultural legacy. The influences on Odjig’s artistic development were varied though her work remains distinctly her own. Her exposure to art began at home, where artistic expression was all around her. Her grandfather, a talented stone carver and painter, was her first mentor – the first one to draw and paint with her and to nurture her creative spirit. She was similarly encouraged by her Ojibwa father (who drew) and English mother, (who embroidered). Later, Odjig sought out a broader artistic education, opening herself up not only to aboriginal influences and imagery, but studying the masters and European art; she was particularly influenced by Picasso’s cubism.
While Odjig’s work has been associated with the Woodlands School, in “Odjig : the Art of Daphne Odjig” (Boyer & Podedworny p. 12) Odjig herself points to the key difference: While in the Woodlands School there is an overriding “concern for spiritual quest”, her works incorporate “the importance of womanhood and sense of family”. These themes resonate in this work, where one is able to see both Daphne the mother and Daphne the child.
