Karen Goodfellow shows Indigenous eco-art at The Art Gallery Osoyoos

Mixed-media pieces by Karen Goodfellow include The Path Family, Beats a Path to the Door, Off the Beaten Path, Leads You up the Garden Path, and Straight ‘n Narrow is the Path. (Richard McGuire Photo)

Karen Goodfellow, who calls herself an “Indigenous eco-artist,” is presenting her show “Spirit of the Land” at The Art Gallery Osoyoos (TAGO) throughout September.

The show officially opens Saturday, Sept. 7 and runs until Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. An Opening Reception Preview Night is being held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 6, with refreshments served on the lawn of the gallery.

Goodfellow, who currently lives halfway up Anarchist Mountain by Osoyoos, was born in Vancouver in 1960. Her mother is First Nations and her grandmother is Squamish First Nations. Her Father was Austrian with Gypsy (Romani) lineage.

Goodfellow became serious about art in her 40s when she moved to the American Southwest. She studied at the Emily Carr University of Art & Design, obtaining a Certificate in Fine Art.

She has several hundred two- and three-dimensional pieces including paintings, native mannequins, assemblages, drums, gourds, tambourines, dolls and spirit totems. She has salvaged flotsam and jetsam for her 3D pieces.

“My land-based art is part of my journey back to my indigeneity,” she says in her Artist Statement. “I feel like an alchemist by blending elements of indigenous sensibilities, eco-conscious artifacts, and a touch of whimsy. My studio is a cauldron where creativity bubbles and golden possibility emerges from discarded treasures. No doubt that my ancestors, both Indigenous and Austrian, are cackling while they watch.”

The gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

It is located at 8713 Main St. in Osoyoos, B.C., just west of Town Hall.

Click on thumbnail images below to see in Virtual Gallery. Use arrow keys to flip through images. Click on images to see title at top.

Mixed-media pieces by Karen Goodfellow include He Hits the Nail on the Head/She Fights Tooth and Nail, and All My Relations.(Richard McGuire Photo)
Karen Goodfellow’s painting Native Innocence hangs in the front room. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Mixed media pieces by Karen Goodfollow include (clockwise from left) Men’s PowWow Fancy Dance, Dragonback 1, Dragonback 2, White Wind Walking, Bark Couture 2 and Bark Couture 1. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Pictured here are Rattlesnake Medicine Woman (left), and Men’s PowWow Fancy Dance. (Richard McGuire Photo)
These mixed media pieces are Bark Couture 1 & 2 by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
From left are: Spring Sentinel, Spring Season, and Spring Spire. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Mixed media paintings by Karen Goodfellow are Her Majesty (left) and His Majesty (right). The centre picture is Native Innocence. (Richard McGuire Photo)
At top is Mamxwem (Mamquam River). Middle is Seen Many Winters. Bottom right is Ripe with Winter Berries. (Richard McGuire Photo)
At left is Nsilwx-nitem tl’s sutich (Elaho River-Wild Spirit Place. On the right is Spu7ets’ (Rubble Creek), both by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Pillar of Positivity, by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Romeo’s Juliette by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
At left is Auntie Who Pokes Fun, which is paired with (right) Auntie With Sharp Tongue and Sharper Mind, by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
At left is Ch’lyakmesh (Cheakamus River), and the torso at right is Quan Yin, both by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
Clockwise from left are: The Three Sisters, Vision Quest, and Solitary Refinement, all by Karen Goodfellow. (Richard McGuire Photo)
From left (bottom) are: Goose Medicine: Mating for Life, Rust Sculpture 1, Walking on Sacred Ground, and Romantiquaria, all be Karen Goodfellow. The painting at top is Desert Scape. (Richard McGuire Photo)
These pieces by Karen Goodfellow are placed on plinths in the middle of the back room. They include The White Queen, Mad Hatter, Sees Things Others Don’t, The Red Queen, The Catwalk, and Bear Trap. (Richard McGuire Photo)

Author: Richard McGuire

Richard McGuire is an Osoyoos photographer who worked at the Osoyoos Times between 2012 and 2018, first as reporter and then as editor. He has a long career in journalism as well as research, communication and management at the House of Commons in Ottawa and in the federal government.