Caroline Monnet
Caroline Monnet is a multidisciplinary artist of Anishinaabe and French ancestry, originally from the Outaouais region, who lives and works in Mooniyang/Montreal (Canada). Her work has been shown in solo exhibitions in Canada, the United States and Europe. The artist has also exhibited at the Whitney Biennial (New York, USA), Toronto Art Biennial (Canada), KØS Museum (Køge, Denmark), Musée d'art contemporain (Montréal, Canada) and National Gallery of Canada (Ottawa, Canada), among others. Her work is included in numerous collections in North America and at the Maison de l'UNESCO in Paris. Caroline Monnet is represented by Blouin Division in Montreal and Toronto.
Echoes From a Near Future and Ikwewak
Since 2016, multidisciplinary artist Caroline Monnet has been developing a compelling body of photographic and video work that celebrates Indigenous women in all their splendor: eccentric, elegant, proud, and charismatic. The photo Echoes from a Near Future and her series Ikwewak is part of a broader effort to rewrite visual narratives that have long marginalized or distorted the representation of First Nations women.
In Echoes From a Near Future and Ikwewak, Monnet presents six Indigenous women who directly confront the viewer’s gaze, breaking away from the colonial, anthropological, Eurocentric, and patriarchal perspectives that have historically defined their portrayal. These powerful portraits act as forms of resistance. Through a sociological reflection on systems of power, Monnet highlights the double threat faced by Indigenous women: subjected to both the colonial and the male gaze. Ikwewak stands as a tribute, a political gesture, and an affirmation of dignity.
Through this visual and conceptual experimentation, Caroline Monnet reinserts First Nations female bodies into the spaces of our cities, our lives, our families, and our collective memory. Her work contributes to a broader cultural reappropriation and assertion of identity, driven by a vibrant sense of empowerment and agency.
In Echoes From a Near Future and Ikwewak, Monnet presents six Indigenous women who directly confront the viewer’s gaze, breaking away from the colonial, anthropological, Eurocentric, and patriarchal perspectives that have historically defined their portrayal. These powerful portraits act as forms of resistance. Through a sociological reflection on systems of power, Monnet highlights the double threat faced by Indigenous women: subjected to both the colonial and the male gaze. Ikwewak stands as a tribute, a political gesture, and an affirmation of dignity.
Through this visual and conceptual experimentation, Caroline Monnet reinserts First Nations female bodies into the spaces of our cities, our lives, our families, and our collective memory. Her work contributes to a broader cultural reappropriation and assertion of identity, driven by a vibrant sense of empowerment and agency.
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