Join us as we explore the work of self-taught artist Angus Trudeau, whose paintings and intricately-crafted model boats and lighthouses offer a unique look into the history, waterways, and communities of Manidoo Mnising (Manitoulin Island) and the Great Lakes region.  

Trudeau created works that document everyday life along the shoreline with remarkable detail, drawing on his experiences in the maritime industry, as well as memories, photographs, postcards, and local histories. Through painting and model-making, his work preserves the histories of waterways, working communities, and Anishinaabe presence on the land, offering a powerful reflection on memory, continuity, and change.  In this edition of Close Encounters, we’ll discover how Trudeau's practice connects lived experience to broader stories of labour, movement, place, and resilience.  

Barry Ace is an Anishinaabe-Odawa artist, curator, educator, and debendaagzijig (citizen) of M’Chigeeng First Nation on Manidoo Mnising (Manitoulin Island). His multidisciplinary practice spans textiles, sculpture, installation, and digital media, and is known for combining traditional Anishinaabe forms, such as quillwork and beadwork, with contemporary materials, exploring the relationship between Indigenous knowledge systems, technology, and cultural continuity.