'An unforgettable experience': Canadian Museum of History mourns the passing of Alex Janvier

Renowned artist Janvier has died at the age of 89. Officials at the Assembly of First Nations annual general meeting announced his death and held a moment of silence.(The Canadian Press/Jason Franson)

Renowned Indigenous multi-talented painter, Alex Janvier, has died at the age of 89. 

Officials at the Assembly of First Nations annual general meeting announced his death Wednesday and held a moment of silence.

The Canadian Museum of History (CMH) said in a news release on Wednesday, it offers its condolences to his family and friends.

"I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of renowned Denesuline artist Alex Janvier, who was so highly respected and admired by all those who work at the Museum. His monumental work, Morning Star – Gambeh Then', is a centrepiece of our Museum, and is something that I always share with guests when I take them through the building. Looking up to discover this work is an unforgettable experience and I am comforted to know that Janvier's legacy will live on at the Museum through this groundbreaking work", said Caroline Dromaguet, president and chief executive officer of the CMH.

Janvier was born in 1935 on the Le Goff Reserve in Alberta. He had a traditional upbringing speaking the Dene language. Janvier was encouraged to pursue art at the age of eight, when he became a pupil at the Blue Quills Indian Residential School.

Throughout his career, he created thousands of paintings, including his largest mural – Morning Star, “which adorns the dome of the Haida Gwaii Salon since 1993. Painted by Janvier with the help of his son, this mural rises seven stories above the salon and covers 418 m2,” the museum adds.

Janvier was celebrated and honoured on many occasions, as a member of the Order of Canada and the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts. He received multiple awards, including a National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002, a Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts in 2008, and a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2013.

With files from The Canadian Press