Speplól Tanya Zilinski
Speplól Tanya Zilinski
Anishinaabe, Manitoba
Tanya is an Anishinaabe artist, of Aggaamaakwaa Manitoba and is a member of The Red River Nation with family and ancestral ties to Dakota, Cree, Anishinaabe and Huron Wendat Nations throughout Turtle Island's Plains and Great Lakes regions maternally and is Ukrainian paternally. One of their traditional names is Speplól, which means Little Crow and was a name given to them at the age of fourteen. Speplól is a mother of six, two with intellectual disabilities caused by a rare genetic disorder and is the matriarch
of their family.
They were born on Ts'qó:ls, which is the Halq'eméylem name for what is known to settlers today as “Hope, B.C”. Their medium is traditional Indigenous loom beadwork and the retelling of oral stories and teachings through patterns laid out on beadwork tapestries.
They were taught to loom bead at 15 years old by an Elder in their community at Chawathil First Nation. Speplól has developed methods and techniques for creating large loom beaded tapestries made from tiny glass seed beads to pass down cultural knowledge of
both Anishinaabe and Stó:lō cultures to their six children and future generations. Speplól graduated school later in life at the age of forty, then went to university to learn Halq'eméylem and earn a teaching certification.
Speplól is connected to the Stó:lō community in the Teltíyt Tribe area through unification of the last 31 years, six children, and grandchildren. They have both training and permissions to teach the language and culture of the Upper River Stó:lō people and is a certified teacher of the BCTF currently teaching the language and culture for School District 78 Fraser Cascade.
Artist Statement
Exploration of cultural identity. This is how my voyage with loom beading tapestries emerged. Colour, materials and textures are guided by spirit; my hands flow with direction of that which cannot be seen but is there in celestial essence and in my reality.
I use traditional loom beadwork for the purpose of passing on cultural knowledge, language, oral stories, for a spiritual connection to my Ancestors and as a daily tincture to cure the body and mind. I have developed my own methods and techniques through experimentation for creating large loom beaded tapestries that unite two cultures, complimenting one another, for the next seven generations and beyond of community and family. I am at oneness while I am creating, and this process has gifted me a new perspective on life.
It is with great gratitude I acknowledge this canoe journey has guided me to a good place and the Ancestors will continue paddling alongside me to help me navigate through the waters.
CV
Solo Exhibitions
- A Fusion of Traditions, upcoming at Prairie Fusion Gallery, Manitoba Aug 4, 2026 – Sept 10, 2026
- Evolution of Beadwork, upcoming at O’Connor Group Gallery Chilliwack, BC December 10, 2025 – Jan 17, 2026
- Transcendence, upcoming at Ranger Station Gallery Harrison Hot Springs, BC Oct 4 – Oct 26, 2025
- A Fusion of Traditions, upcoming at Dal Schindell Gallery Vancouver Sept 17, 2025 – Oct 29, 2025
- S'íwes te Tém:éxw, upcoming at The Gallery at Queens Park New West, BC Sept 3, 2025 – Sept 27, 2025
- S'íwes te Tém:éxw, upcoming at VIVA Alliance Vancouver, BC July 3, 2025 –July 26, 2025
- Transcendence at The Alternator Center of Contemporary Art Kelowna, BC May 30, 2025 –July 11, 2025
- A Fusion of Traditions at the Art Gallery of St. Albert, Alberta April 29, 2025 - July 26, 2025
- A Fusion of Traditions at Massy Art Gallery Vancouver June 5, 2024 – Aug 8, 2024
- O:xwest kw’e Shxweli la ye Mestiyexw, The Reach Gallery Museum, Abbotsford, BC Sept 2022 to January 2023.
- S’iwes te Siyelyolexwalh, The Ranger Station Gallery, Harrison Hot Springs, BC From April 2022 to May 2022
Group exhibitions
- A Celebration of Indigenous Artistry, Amelia Douglas Gallery, New West Sept 17, 2024 - Nov 1, 2024
- A Canoe is an Island, Gachet Gallery Vancouver Feb 2, 2024 - March 22, 2024
- Our Home on Native Land, CityScape Gallery, North Van from Sept 2023 to Nov 2023
- Bead by Bead at Meteque Atelier D’Art, Montreal, Quebec from November 2020 to Jan 2021
Public Art
- Commission for seven loom beaded tapestry artworks. Seabird Island Band cultural center. November 2022
- Commission for loom beaded tapestry. Ground Wood Books, My Name is Seepeetza 30th Anniversary Edition book cover. December 2021
Grants Awarded
- Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Across Canada Touring and Circulation for, “A Fusion of Traditions” October 2024
Singing performances
- Artist Response Team, Ey St’elmexw St’elt’ilem (Good Medicine Songs) at GW Graham Secondary Sept. 25, 2024
- Artist Response Team, Ey St’elmexw St’elt’ilem (Good Medicine Songs) at Maple Ridge GETIFest on Sept. 21, 2024
- Artist Response Team, Ey St’elmexw St’elt’ilem (Good Medicine Songs) at Abbotsford, BC June 15 and 16, 2024.
- Artist Response Team, Ey St’elmexw St’elt’ilem (Good Medicine Songs) at Kent Elementary School Agassiz, BC June 18, 2024.
- Artist Response Team, Ey St’elmexw St’elt’ilem (Good Medicine Songs) Step in the Right Direction production Nov. 2024
Commissions...
Commission for seven loom beaded tapestry artworks. Seabird Island Band cultural center. November 2022
Commission for loom beaded tapestry. Ground Wood Books, My Name is Seepeetza 30th Anniversary Edition book cover. December 2021
Buy their work...
Please visit Little Crow Beading and Dreamcatchers on IndigenARTSY to purchase Tanya's work, or contact them for any inquiries.
Membership Identification Status
