Artist Statement

Following up the iconic Poundmaker design was an especially meaningful experience.

When Joe asked me to design the Chief Mistahimaskwa (Big Bear) skateboard, I knew right away it would be a significant challenge. Honoring the life of such a powerful figure and his direct descendant (Joe), was a challenging endeavour and great responsibility. With this in mind, I spent several weeks searching for a vision to inspire the design. I was immensely grateful and humbled when one finally came to me.

The design centers on honoring Big Bear, a Sundance chief who, under immense pressure from external forces, refused to capitulate. Chief Big Bear fought for the preservation of his peoples way of life under the highest expression of oppression. He resisted signing Treaty 6, which would have forced his people to abandon their sovereignty and way of life in favor of living on a reservation and accepting subservience to a foreign group intent on controlling their land and people. Alongside Chief Poundmaker, Big Bear chose instead to host his Sundance ceremony, allowing his beloved people to heal and pray together in their ancestral way.

With a shared dedication and love of the Sundance, I myself have completed a four-year commitment, and Joe continues to walk his Sundance path, this ceremony is centered in the design. The Sundance arbor depicted on the skateboard is intentionally empty, symbolizing the nature of a vision. Sundances are born from visions, and like all things in life, they must be envisioned before they can take form.

This design is a prayer for Joe’s legacy - his life, his ancestors, his living and future descendants. It seeks to convey the love that his people and skateboard community has for him, extending beyond his kin and the colonial project known as Canada. Joe continues to demonstrate an incredible commitment to his vision for living a good, authentically Indigenous life, much like his ancestor, Chief Big Bear

The board was released by Colonialism Skateboards in September 2024.