“Lita Fontaine is alive and well and living in Winnipeg.“

Lita Fontaine is of Dakota, Anishinaabe, and Metis descent. Fontaine was born in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, and grew up in Winnipeg’s North End. She is an interdisciplinary artist, and received her Masters of Fine Arts specializing in Inter-Media. Lita is a founding member of Urban Shaman Contemporary Aboriginal Gallery, where she held her first solo exhibition. She received the University of Manitoba Distinguished Alumni Award in 2021 and her work can be found on murals in Winnipeg, and in personal and public art collections.

Lita Fontaine was employed as the Artist in Residence with Seven Oaks School Division for over 24 years. In this role, Lita collaborated with teachers, integrating art into the school division’s curricula. Fontaine has also taught Foundation Drawing and Aboriginal Art History at the University of Manitoba’s School of Art as a Sessional Instructor. Recently, Lita facilitated the workshop Ozhitoon jii-Miigiweng (to create and to share) at Creative Manitoba, guiding participants through a holistic hands-on experience of Indigenous Ways of Knowing through land-based practices.

Even with a busy schedule, Fontaine’s focus is her own professional art practice. She believes the visual arts act as a catharsis that nourishes emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual growth. Many thanks to Lita Fontaine for taking a few moments away from her preparations as she gets ready to launch her upcoming exhibition Winyan (the Dakota word for “woman”), opening at WAG-Qaumajuq on July 5, 2024.

How did you start your creative practice? Were there any key experiences that influenced the direction of your work?

I started when I was a kid.
Found objects, remnants of fabric, apple boxes, pencils,
a good steak knife (saw) and paper were my mediums.

Now my medium is mix media.
MFA intermedia

Key directions for my work … always kept trying out new things.