From left to right, Krysta Alexson, Nadine Carpenter and Andrea Custer H. Clarke celebrate the grand opening of Indigenous 1st Designs. (Rob Mahon/paNOW Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Indigenous Store Grand Opening

Tanisi: Indigenous 1st Designs draws on local artists, Cree culture for grand opening

Aug 19, 2022 | 1:00 PM

South Hill Mall was host to a grand opening of a unique new store. The items on the shelves, however, represented only a small part of the store’s significance.

Today, Aug. 19, was the grand opening of Indigenous 1^st Designs in the mall. The stores clothing and designs prominently feature Indigenous languages and art. Even the polo shirts worn by the staff have the word “tanisi” on them, Cree for “How are you?”

“My husband and my brother did an amazing job, as well as the artists that came and helped us design the store,” said Andrea Custer H. Clarke, who operates the store as well as serves as a Cree language lecturer at First Nations University and a program coordinator. “All the people involved in bringing in their product, especially Indigenous artisans and craftspeople.”

Everything from the products to the artwork on the walls has ties to the Indigenous community in Prince Albert and beyond. The paintings on the walls, which are based on rock drawings in the Churchill River area, were done by Nipawin artist Horton Severight.

“It’s hard to explain what they actually really mean because people don’t know what they really mean because they are so old,” Severight said. “But I’ve done a lot of studying and research, and to the best of my knowledge I’ve painted what they actually mean.”

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To keep the paintings as close to the originals and as natural as possible, Severight said he painted them with his fingers.

“Some of these pictographs are my own, original in our time,” said Severight. “Some of them have quite the meanings, and some of them still tie into the seven teachings of Native culture right now. I painted them as best I could.”

In addition to Indigenous designs, much of the merchandise in the store is themed around Indigenous languages, especially Cree and Dene. Some of the mugs include QR codes that, when scanned, take the scanner to a Cree language lesson.

“As a mom, I’m passing on the language to my kids,” said Custer H. Clarke. “It’s very, very important. I can’t emphasize that enough.”

During the grand opening, representatives for First Nations University were among the crowd. The opening drew quite a crowd of shoppers as well.

“I’m happy we have such an amazing group of people to support us,” Custer H. Clarke said. “Our elders are here, our mothers are here.”

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP