Brian Jungen,
Prototype for New Understanding #4, 1998
Brian Jungen (b. 1970) is an artist of Dane-zaa and Swiss heritage who is based in the North Okanagan region of British Columbia. Jungen’s Prototype for New Understanding #4, 1998, is an important early work of sculpture that recalls a Northwest Coast ceremonial mask but was created from deconstructed and repurposed athletic footwear. Made of Nike Air Jordan and Nike Pippen basketball shoes and accentuated with human hair, the work is a provocation, commenting on the commodification of Indigenous art and ceremonial belongings, and the continued resilience of Indigenous people in the face of ongoing colonial violence. This work is one of twenty-three from Jungen’s Prototypes for New Understanding series produced between 1998 and 2005, and one of the initial eight that were first exhibited at the Charles H. Scott Gallery in Vancouver in 1999. The series caused a sensation in the Canadian art world, as reviewed in The Vancouver Sun, The Globe and Mail, National Post, and Canadian Art magazine, and works from the series were acquired by the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Art Gallery of Ontario. In the decades since, Jungen has continued to use and modify quotidian commercially available products in his work. However, the masks made of basketball shoes remain his most recognizable works and are among the most important recent contributions to Canadian art history. This landmark work was recently donated to the McMichael from the collection of Claudia Beck and Andrew Gruft.
related articles
Anne Low, Dream Meadow, 2023
November 10, 2025Dream Meadow, 2023, is a textile-based sculpture made by the artist Anne Low (b. 1981) in her former studio on Denman Island in British Columbia. The work comprises a long skirt and pocketed apron with attached adornments. The striped textiles used to create the skirt and its lining were handwoven by the artist on a loom with hand-dyed wool and silk, using eighteenth- and nineteenth-century weaving techniques and historic patterns.
Kananginak Pootoogook, Two Caribou, 2008–2009
November 10, 2025Two Caribou, 2008–2009, by Kananginak Pootoogook (1935–2010), is a rich example of contemporary drawing from Kinngait (formerly Cape Dorset), Nunavut, depicting two bull caribou locked in battle, perhaps over a mate. Hooves fly and antlers clash, lending a sense of immediacy to the conflict.
Native Art Department International, Aanzinaago (Caught in a Transformation) 01, 2024
November 10, 2025Last year at Art Toronto we acquired Aanzinaago (Caught in a Transformation) 01, 2024, by Native Art Department International (NADI), for the collection at the McMichael. NADI is a collaborative long-term project created and administered by the Ojibwe Anishinaabe performance artist, sculptor, and mixed-media artist Maria Hupfield (b. 1975) and the Chiricahua Apache and Mexican multimedia artist Jason Lujan (b. 1971).
Kent Monkman, Compositional Study for “tâpwêwin (Truth),” 2025
December 23, 2025Kent Monkman (b. 1965) is a leading Cree visual artist from Fisher River Cree Nation in Treaty 5 Territory, Manitoba, and is currently based in Toronto. Compositional Study for “tâpwêwin (Truth),” 2025, is part of Monkman’s new Knowledge Keeper series, a body of work examining the history and enduring impact of Canada’s residential school system.
Nep Sidhu and Nicholas Galanin, SHE in Mud Form, 2015–16
December 27, 2025SHE in Mud Form, 2015–16, is a landmark cross-cultural collaboration between Nep Sidhu and Nicholas Galanin, forming part of their ongoing series No Pigs in Paradise.
Lawren Harris, Mount Lefroy, c. 1929
January 2, 2026Mount Lefroy, c. 1929, by the Group of Seven’s Lawren S. Harris (1885–1970), is one of the five known graphite studies for his iconic painting Mt. Lefroy, 1930, a standout in the McMichael collection.
F.H. Varley, Church in a Canyon, BC, 1929–30
February 7, 2026Church in a Canyon, BC, 1929–30, is a small but powerful work by F.H. Varley (1881–1969) of the Group of Seven.
Camille Turner, Pride and Possibilities, 2012
February 5, 2026Camille Turner (b. 1960) is a Jamaican Canadian artist who works in photography, video, and performance.
Marian Dale Scott, Portrait of Lois Gordon in a Russian Dress, 1935
February 5, 2026Portrait of Lois Gordon in a Russian Dress, 1935, is a singular work in the career of Marian Dale Scott, a pioneering modernist and important figure in twentieth-century art in Canada.
Azadeh Elmizadeh, A Hundred Tongues Lie Hidden in Silence, 2025 and Enfolding, 2025
March 4, 2026Discover two recently acquired works from Azadeh Elmizadeh’s Timekeepers series.
Sealskin Wall Hangings by Mina Kumarluk Napartuk
April 1, 2026A recent gift of Nunavik wall hangings highlights the remarkable legacy of Inuit artist Mina Kumarluk Napartuk—discover how her work bridges tradition, community, and innovation in Arctic textile art.