“I've been painting and drawing for as long as I can remember,” shares Heather Endall, an artist, educator, and member of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation. She lives in Winnipeg but grew up in Brandon. She and her sister were part of the Sixties Scoop, removed from their parents when they were young and raised by their grandparents, separate from their culture. They have had to reconnect later in life, with Endall connecting more in university. She went to University of Manitoba, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.

After graduation, Endall found work at the Neeginan Centre teaching Adult Education. Later, she moved on to the Red River College for 15 years, working in Indigenous education. Working with elders and other Indigenous people, Endall learned a lot.

As an artist, her earliest influences were the Illustrated cultural books that touched her heart when she was young. Endall had the chance to study at Emily Carr College of Art and Design for a summer. She hadn’t done much with her art until 2012, when divorce left her trying to keep herself occupied. When she was laid off from her job in 2024, she seized the chance to make art full-time.

Teaching art through Connected North and leading in person workshops with Indigenous Services Canada, Red Cross and Girl Guides of Canada, she’s thriving. While she’s an introvert, she’s completely comfortable teaching art, having taught her 121st class with Connected North. Endall loves seeing the artwork students create, explaining, “I always say, everybody can paint. Anybody can paint. Sometimes they just need to learn how to see things differently and just know a few techniques.” She shares techniques and tools and makes sure people know they don’t need expensive materials or paints, whatever they have is fine. She teaches the same techniques she uses herself and she loves seeing people who don’t think they are artists build skills and confidence while creating art.

Growing up, Endall had an aunt who was an interior designer and an uncle who was an architect and they supported her art and encouraged her to be creative. At the same time, they knew she wouldn’t thrive in their fields and would benefit from more freedom to create. Her grandmother encouraged her to be a teacher but she didn’t want to, thinking of how strict teachers seemed to be. Looking back, she wishes she had listened to that advice and started teaching sooner. Now, watching the kids come up to the camera with their completed art work fills her with joy.

In her classes, Endall talks about interconnectedness and the flow of energy. She offers pieces of wisdom, sharing her knowledge, acknowledging she has much to learn herself. What she shares relates to what they are painting, the medicines, types of trees, animals and lunar cycles. Telling stories while students paint, she creates an artistic learning experience full of traditional ecological knowledge. She loves when students and teachers share their own teachings in class, remarking on similarities and differences in language and culture. “It just feels like I'm really growing, not just with my artistic experience and my teaching, but also with my personal knowledge of my culture and just Indigenous culture in general,” she beams. Art is meditative for Endall, a relaxing pursuit that her kids enjoy, too.

When it comes to maintaining her mental wellness, Endall has found making art therapeutic. She found the emotional release helpful after her divorce and her job loss. She also loves making music, having started playing the piano at four. Sometimes, she brings the two together, listening to music while she makes art. She’s found inspiration in the work of other artists, particularly in birch bark biting and learns new techniques for her art through online tutorials. She’s also inspired by all the teachers she’s learned from who are revitalizing language and cultural teachings. She hopes one day to explore art therapy.

If she could give her younger self advice it would be to keep going with her piano lessons. Endall continued until she was 24. She would also say, “Definitely don't listen to anybody else when they say that you can't do something. If you want to do it, just do it."

To inspire Indigenous youth, Endall would like to say, “If you want to do something, focus and do it. It may not happen right away…It's sure a good thing to keep you out of bad circles and bad lifestyles. Just do what you love. They always say... if you do something you love, you're not working."

She’s been making art for as long as she can remember and now Heather Endall delivers unforgettable art classes through Connected North and other organizations. Job loss and divorce threatened to derail her but she found joy and purpose in making art and sharing her artistic techniques. Teaching about nature and sharing her culture, she’s making a masterpiece of her next act.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.