Arts·Commotion

3 artists talk the future of Indigenous futurism

Musician Marek Tyler, writer Waubgeshig Rice and visual artist Susan Blight discuss how the concept inspires artists across all disciplines.

Marek Tyler, Waubgeshig Rice and Susan Blight talk about where they find inspiration for their art

Pixel art rendering of a person walking beside a robot outside.
Terra Nova is an independent video game made by Maize Longboat, who describes it as a story of Indigenous futurism. It won the award for Best Emerging Digital or Interactive Work at the 2019 ImagineNATIVE Film & Media Festival. (Maize Longboat)

Whether it's books, movies, TV shows or art, Indigenous people and their philosophies are commonly portrayed as being situated in the past. The concept of Indigenous futurism aims to challenge that. It's a broad umbrella term for a movement across music, film, art and literature where teachings and perspectives have a critical role to play in creating a better world for the next generation.

Susan Blight is an Anishinaabe visual artist and filmmaker from Couchiching First Nation, currently based in Toronto. Waubgeshig Rice is an Anishinaabe author from the Wasauksing First Nation who's now based in Sudbury, Ontario. Marek Tyler is a nêhiyaw and Scottish musician from Treaty 6 territory.

On this special episode of Commotion airing on the National Day For Truth and Reconciliation, Blight, Rice and Tyler join host Elamin Abdelmahmoud to discuss how the concept of Indigenous futurism is inspiring artists across all disciplines, and how its forward-thinking philosophies are promoting the cause of Indigenous self-determination.

You can listen to the full discussion from today's show on CBC Listen or on our podcast, Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud, available wherever you get your podcasts.


Panel produced by Stuart Berman and Danielle Grogan.