Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun

Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun (b. 1957) is a contemporary artist of Cowichan (Hul’q’umi’num Coast Salish) and Okanagan (Syilx) descent. Yuxweluptun studied at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, and has become one of Canada’s most prominent contemporary Indigenous artists and activists. His work explores political, environmental and cultural issues affecting Indigenous peoples today. The artist is perhaps best known for his depiction of landscapes and bureaucrats - Native and non-Native alike - rendered with a characteristic blend of Western realism and Northwest Coast design elements. Yuxweluptun’s work rectifies colonial histories of the North American landscape as devoid of human presence while exercising a sharp critique of the ongoing land degradation brought upon by exploitative practices such as clearcut logging and water pollution. Yuxweluptun’s work has been widely exhibited as part of both solo and group presentations, including the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa; the Eiteljorg Museum, Indianapolis; the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville; and the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin.