Interview with Ena Greyeyes

Ena Greyeyes is a Canadian Aboriginal Artist. She is a Cree and while she was a child she attended a Residential School in Saskatchewan. Now, Ena Greyeyes lives in North Hatley, Québec and she have told her story at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. She is open to speak about her life with people and this is why she answered to our questions.

What is more important to you: being an Elder or being an artist?

Being an Elder. My life as an Elder has brought me to a place of serenity.

How does your experience at residential schools impact your life today?

I am still afraid of the dark.[…] It took me a lifetime to actually believe that I was also deserving of success. Because, as children, we knew what to do with failure. That was dummed into us. Success, not.

How is your relationship with your sister affected by your mutual history in residential schools?

We still get along pretty well.

How do your paintings reveal your past?

At first, I had difficulty mixing the right colours for my art. I could not see them nor feel them, and it seemed to me that a shadow lingered over my work. I had to work through the many layers of shadows that came from my on, I slosly began to discover the beauty of colour in my art.

What How long did it take you to connect to and understand the power of forgiveness?

It took me many years. I became sick with cancer and it is when I realised that my past was getting me sick and that I had to do something. I contacted Elder and worked on myself and now I forgive people from my past.

By Audrey Rivard