Robyn McLeod

Robyn McLeod was born in Yellowknife, NT. She is of Dene and Scottish decent and is a member of the Deh Gah Gotie First Nations in the Deh Cho Region. Her work is compiled of many different mediums such as fashion design, digital art, traditional Dene art, moosehide tanning and mixed media. She has two years of training from Blanche Macdonald as well as the Foundation Year with Honours in Visual Art at SOVA. She uses the inspiration that comes from family, culture and environmentally sustainability that comes from the resourcefulness of growing up in the Northern Territories.

This type of sewing originated when her grandmother watched a nun make a flower out of yarn and she then went home to use moose hair to make flowers. This makes me extremely proud to have a long line of strong, creative matriarchs in my family. My vision for this line is to have fashion couture gowns as well as a couture outerwear that is inspired by the north and the people who live in these extreme conditions. I have had to create new pathways in learning to connect with other artists during the pandemic. I have used new technology such as Zoom and using Facebook/Instagram to connect with my artist peers and contractors. I am excited to share my collection with the Chu Niikwän Residency. Mahsi cho.

01. Robyn McLeod, Beaded Visor (2020).

02. Robyn McLeod, The Auntie Dress (2020). Black and white upholstery fabric, silk polyester, satin ribbons, Ft McPherson, NWT locally trapped wolverine. Size 8.

03. Robyn McLeod, The Etsu Dress (2020). Black synthetic fabric, habotai silk polyester. Size 8.

04. Robyn McLeod, The Etandah Dress (2020). 24k gold and glass beads, moosehide, printed cotton, gold bamboo dupioni silk, silk polyester, hook and eye

Robyn McLeod Artist Statement

I am in the process of creating an Indigenous fashion design line exploring contemporary concepts and aspects of Dene culture. It’s fusing my culture’s time-honoured craftsmanship with new and unexpected contemporary materials and media. This line is rooted in Dene historical significance and built locally in the north. It’s a way to reclaim my heritage in a time where Indigenous people continue to remain invisible. I have been seeing a huge increase of Indigenous women taking the leap into the international fashion stage and now that the pandemic has happened, it has squashed all my plans in sharing my creations on the fashion runways. I have needed to find new ways of showcasing my work. I like the thought of being able to create clothing for my own people to wear that would represent their culture and heritage such as quilling, floral beadwork, delta braid, tufting and hide tanning. I am using environmentally conscious practices that incorporate furs and hides that I have processed myself or bought from local trappers and hide tanners of the north.

My biggest inspirations come from both my grandmothers Celine Villeneuve and Late Florestine McLeod. Both were master seamstresses in their own styles. Celine is now in her 90s and still sews and beads when she is able to. She is also a master delta braid designer. This style originates in the region of the Beaufort Delta, which is the northernmost region in the Northwest Territories where she resides. The delta braid is a rare form of art still practiced today by my family. It is a beautiful form of appliqué and is ribbon of geometric patterns made from layers of multicoloured bias tape and seam bindings. It has been used for generations on parkas and dresses.

As for my Late Grandmother Florestine McLeod (née Lafferty) she was a master Moose hair tufter. Tufting is producing three-dimensional images by stitching and trimming bundles of moose/caribou hair onto tanned hide or birch bark.

04