PNIAI - Professional Native Indian Artists Inc.
The Native Group of Seven
PNIAI or the Native Group of Seven…
Is an art collective of indigenous artists that came together beginning in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada in 1973. Formed by Daphne Odjig, Alex Janvier, Norval Morriseau, Jackson Beardy, Eddy Cobiness, Carl Ray, and Joseph M. Sanchez, the Professional Native Indian Artists, Incorporated is a groundbreaking artistic practice of a group of artists uniting to break down boundaries, condemn colonial and discriminatory social policies of the past, and show defiance in the face of complex cultural and political times. It is our hope that the evolving role of indigenous art will help redefine the culture and the capacity of 21st century institutions to examine and exhibit this and all work with objective truth.
The only surviving member of the group is Joseph M. Sanchez, who remains an active elder, teacher, and painter in the community.
7: Professional Native Artists, Inc.
The 7 show exhibited from 2013 - 2016 across Canada.
Drawing on both private and public collections the exhibition brings together 120 works including those featured in formative exhibitions of the Group along with a number of recently uncovered masterworks of the period that have not been publicly accessible for quite some time. Significant works by each member are showcased demonstrating their distinctive styles and experimentations. The selection serves to challenge the myth that PNIAI members participated in a unified “Woodland style,” as well, to substantiate the avant-gardism of the Group. The exhibition seeks to honour their efforts and recognize the contributions of these seven artists to the history of First Nations aesthetic production and to the history of art on Turtle Island.
The Ancestors are Talking: Paintings by the Indigenous Seven
Exhibiting at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies May 2nd - October 19th, 2025
Encompassing works from the Indigenous Seven, works on display include paintings of the land and family inspired by the mountains of Jasper; views of the Boreal Forest like no other, and images of strength and resistance, which enlighten us to the natural world and ceremony. Imagination and abstraction are shared ideas in the journey of seven artists who, with their inspiration and wisdom, changed the canon of Indigenous art in Canada and continue to inspire future generations of Indigenous artists. Art, color, culture, and spirituality filled the early conversations of the Indigenous Group of Seven followed with decades of painting and activism. They created art to awaken a troubled world, with colors from the quantum reality.
The Indigenous Seven include: Daphne Odjig (1919-2016), a mentor for many and master of color and story. Alex Janvier (1935-2024) whose paintings depict delicate lines and with an understanding of color and form that are otherworldly. Norval Morisseau’s (1932-2007) paintings are full of the natural world, shaman wisdom and color from the House of Invention. The spiritual interrogation of legends by Carl Ray (1943-1978), whose time with us was short, but who inspired us to look with a new understanding. The unique abstraction of Jackson Beardy (1944-1984), the sensitive portrayal of nature by Eddy Cobiness (1933-1996), and the surreal dreaming of Joseph Sánchez (b. 1948).
In a braid of sweetgrass, three big strands create a braid, carrying with it the many individual blades of grass. The three retrospective exhibitions at the National Gallery by Norval, Daphne and Alex opened the door to Indigenous arts in Canada.
The artistic legacy of this iconic art collective from Canada is presented through the eyes of Joseph M. Sánchez, lead curator and last living member, with The Whyte’s curators, Dawn Saunders Dahl and Christina Cuthbertson.