Margaret Harrison

b. 1941, Katepwa Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada

In Margaret's Rug, Margaret Harrison departs from traditional Métis floral designs to depict a specific place—her home in the Katepwa Lake road allowance community in southern Saskatchewan’s Qu’Appelle Valley.

Each element refers to a specific place, story, or women’s task from Harrison’s youth. According to Métis academic Cheryl Troupe, the rug is “a contemporary mnemonic device that allows her [Harrison] to remember and share.” With her mother, Adeline Pelletier dite Racette, Harrison has worked tirelessly to preserve and energize the traditional Métis art forms of rug hooking and silk embroidery. Their efforts are highlighted in the Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) films Aen Kroshay aen tapee avec mi gineey: Métis Hooked Rugs and Mashnikwawchikun avec la sway di fil: Métis Silk Embroidery (see the GDI YouTube page).