Workshop around the book Le premier arbre de Noël

Drawing on the imagery of Le premier arbre de Noël, published by Éditions de la Pastèque, illustrator Charlotte Parent will lead a greeting card workshop where families can (re)discover the wonderful flora and fauna of Nitassinan. Nitassinan, which means “our land” in the Innu-aimun language, is the traditional territory of the Innu. It stretches from Lake Mistassini in the west to the Atlantic Ocean in the east, and from the St. Lawrence River in the south to the edge of the Boreal forest in the north.  

Join us for a reading of the book, followed by a workshop inspired by the artist’s techniques for creating animated beings from her observational drawings of nature. 

About Le premier arbre de Noël

It’s very cold in the North. Winter is difficult for the Innu. Among the trees of the forest, Grand-Manitu, the benevolent Great Spirit, is looking for the one tree that will spread joy to everyone. Could it be the larch, from which the Innu make sleds, bows and ointments? The birch, malleable and robust? Or the magnificent black spruce? “Do you want to become the Christmas tree?” he asks each one. But one by one, the trees decline his offer. All of them… except one that Grand-Manitu had at first overlooked… 

About the illustrator

Charlotte Parent is an illustrator from Quebec City. In 2017, she received her BFA from Concordia University, where she focused on drawing. A big fan of picture books, she now creates coloured pencil and gouache drawings for children’s stories. Charlotte likes to depict the magic of the ordinary and the tiny in her illustrations, which are both sensitive and playful. Le premier arbre de Noël is her second children’s book. 

About the book’s author  

Ovila Fontaine is an Innu from the community of Uashat Mak Mani-Utenam, where he has lived and worked all his life. From an early age, he was interested in hunting and life in the forest. Now a father himself, he has embarked on a journey to understand his own history and culture. Today, Ovila is a great lecturer, gifted at explaining the basics of Innu culture and philosophy to the uninitiated. He is often asked to act as a cultural intermediary for organizations.  

Schedule

• Presented on Saturday, December 23, 2023, and January 7, from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. 
• Length: 90 minutes

Information

• Free activity, in French
• Location: McCord Stewart Museum Atrium
• Space limited, no reservation. 

On-site registration on the day of the activity