Jeff Thomas (born 1956) is an Onondaga Nation photographer, curator, and cultural theorist who works and lives in Ottawa, Ontario."Jeff Thomas’s three decades of ‘Bear Portraits’ trace the evolution of his son from child to grown up member of A Tribe Called Red". National Post, August 12, 2015.
Thomas is known for his photographic work that addresses and interrogates the place of First Nations people in contemporary Canadian society."'Urban Iroquois' photographer Jeff Thomas feels he's finally kept the promise he made 40 years ago" . Q, March 18, 2019. Often, his works explore the disjuncture between depictions he sees of Indigenous people as relics of the past (for instance, in museums), and contemporary Indigenous life as he views it.
His work includes the "Indians on Tour" series began in 2000, in which stereotypical "Indian" figurines are posed against natural or urban landscapes, otherwise against historical monuments and contemporary culture, as Thomas' photographs document First Nations people."Governor General’s Award Winners Announced". Canadian Art, February 13, 2019. In his "Vanishing Race" series, he depicts encounters with stereotypical depictions of Indigeneity.
He is the father of Ehren "Bear Witness" Thomas of the musical group The Halluci Nation (formerly known as A Tribe Called Red.)
Early life Thomas was born in 1956 in Buffalo, New York. Growing up, he spent time in Buffalo as well as the Six Nations of the Grand River reserve.
Photographic career Thomas' photographic practice is primarily concerned with showing the perspective of an "urban Iroquoian person," and what he calls “symbols of Indian-ness.” His work has been shown in galleries and museums across Canada, as well as in the United States and parts of Europe. In 1997, Thomas was featured in Ali Kazimi's documentary film, "Shooting Indians: A Journey with Jeffrey Thomas," which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Collections Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, Ottawa Canadian Museum of Civilization, Ottawa Carleton University Art Gallery, Ottawa Library and Archives Canada Ottawa Oakville Galleries, Oakville, Ontario Kamloops Art Gallery, Kamloops, B.C. National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa MacLaren Art Centre, Barrie, Ontario Museum of the American Indian Washington Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne Museum der Weltkulturen Frankfurt The British Museum, London Ottawa Art Gallery Winnipeg Art Gallery Woodland Cultural Centre, Brantford, Ontario
Selected solo exhibitions 2024: Stories My Father Couldnt Tell Me: Jeff Thomas Origin, Ottawa Art Gallery 2008: Com·mem·o·ra·tion, MacLaren Art Centre, Barrie, Ontario 2008: Who’s your Daddy?: Four Hundred Years Later, Karsh/Mason Gallery, Ottawa, Ontario 2008: Don’t Mess with the Pediment, Stephen Bulger Gallery, Toronto 2008: Drive By: A Road Trip with Jeff Thomas, University of Toronto Art Centre, Toronto, Ontario 2007: Jeff Thomas: Traces of Iroquois Medicine, Ontario Museum of Archaeology, London, Ontario 2006: Jeff Thomas: A Study of Indian-ness, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, Alberta; Grunt Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia 2004–2005: Jeff Thomas: A Study of Indian-ness, Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba, Brandon, Winnipeg; Regina, Saskatchewan; Toronto, Ontario 2004: Scouting for Indians, the Oakville Galleries, Oakville, Ontario 2001: Scouting for Indians, Artspace, Peterborough, Ontario; American Community House, New York City 2001: Lurking in the Shadows, Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, Switzerland 2001: Geronimo Was in Here, The Buffalo Arts Studio, Buffalo, New York 2000: Scouting for Indians, Carleton University Art Gallery, Ottawa, Ontario
Awards In 2008, Thomas was awarded the Karsh Award in Photography. He was a recipient of the Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts in 2019."Photographer Jeff Thomas Wins Governor General’s Award" . PhotoLife, February 28, 2019.Loft, Steven, "Acquisition Proposal for Jeffrey Thomas’s The Delegate at the Highway 17 Hiawatha Wampum Belt, Arnprior, Ontario and The Delegate Visits London England, King Street," accession #42491 and #42492, Curatorial File, National Gallery of Canada.
References
External links Jeffrey M. Thomas fonds (R10613) at Library and Archives Canada "Jeff Thomas" in Photography in Canada, 1839-1989: An Illustrated History by Sarah Parsons and Sarah Bassnett, published by the Art Canada Institute