I Am YEG Arts: Coda Girvan

Coda Girvan is a Métis visual artist whose work focuses on hard-edge abstraction and breaking down organic matter into its most minimal form. For Coda, art is a way to connect with others and his Indigenous heritage while giving viewers the space to come to their own interpretations. Coda was recently selected to create this year’s illustration for the Edmonton Arts Council Shop & Services ​‘Giving Local Feels Good’ campaign and will have their work featured at Latitude 53’s annual fundraiser Schmoozy. In this week’s I Am YEG Arts story, Coda tells us about the importance of community and connecting with other Indigenous creatives and activists, about how he got his start, and shares a few exciting local artists to watch out for.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got your start as an artist.

I moved to Edmonton about seven years ago. I’m originally from smaller towns up north. I moved here because I’ve always had a deep passion for art, but growing up in small towns, there wasn’t much of a community for that. What got me into art originally was seeing graffiti everywhere and getting involved in that at a young age. Realizing that sometimes the risks aren’t worth it, I wanted to move somewhere with a good community. I knew quite a few people creating art in Edmonton and I wanted to be more involved with people that were into doing what I’m interested in. I started doing abstract paintings on canvas about five to six years ago, and slowly I’ve been developing my style over time.

Early on did you have a role model or influential figure who helped encourage your artistic practice?

I’ve always had artists in my family. I’ve had family members who have been into painting and drawing, but mostly music. Being around that environment made me want to create. It was just such a normal thing to be around. When I started getting into graffiti, I really started learning more about the culture and this one artist, Barry McGee, out of San Francisco, always stood out to me. He’s been a huge inspiration for me. I feel like a lot of my artwork is still reminiscent of a lot of my graffiti work. I’ll add drop shadows onto some of my abstractions and create like a 3D effect, or just the way I fill in with my brush, I feel like it’s very similar. I feel like [graffiti] taught me a lot of what I know about creating art. It’s just nice to use a lot of those techniques whether it be on canvas or painting a mural or doing a drawing.

I have a few close friends from my hometown Grande Prairie who have been creating art their whole lives in very unique styles. It’s just nice to see that there are local artists doing their own thing, especially in Edmonton. It’s just constant inspiration all around.

Did you move to Edmonton to study art, or did you learn art on your own and/​or through working with others?

It’s something I’ve picked up on my own. I mean, I’ve always been studying art, but just not through school. I came out to Edmonton because I felt like there’s a lot more going on here. There’s a lot more that I could learn here, more things to get involved with, and a lot more opportunities. There are so many people out here who have spaces that showcase people’s art. It seemed like a really supportive community when I wanted to move out here and it’s a lot more supportive than I was even expecting. It’s a really fulsome scene. And I feel like because it’s a small town, it’s a really humble scene as well. Everybody supports each other and it’s not really like a competition between people on who can get the most showcases or the most projects.

You’ve said before that for you as a Métis person, art is a necessary tool for healing and connecting with community. Can you tell us what you mean by that? 

Where I grew up, I was surrounded by a lot of Indigenous people. All my family is Indigenous. I grew up going to powwows with my father. But it didn’t feel like it was being embraced in a small conservative town. That was another reason I wanted to move here; I knew there was a lot more going on for Indigenous rights in bigger cities. I wanted to get more involved with that as well, and I didn’t really realize how integrated the arts scene is with being an activist for Indigenous rights. 

It’s been nice to work with a lot of Indigenous artists, creatives and activists on projects and getting to discuss our culture with each other, being able to embrace our traditions and acknowledge being Indigenous. It’s something that I was afraid of doing for a long time and being out here and getting more involved with the art community has made me feel less afraid to support my Indigenous background. It’s made me very confident in being Indigenous. It’s been nice to know that there’s a community that supports who I am and what I’m interested in. It’s been a really honouring experience to get more involved with the community. 

What visual art forms do you typically work in? Tell us about some of the major themes or narratives you explore through your work. 

I typically work with acrylic on canvas, but in the past while I’ve been using oil and other mediums as well, playing a lot more with textures. But the theme of my work is usually trying to strip down natural elements to their most basic form. I’m really into hard-edge abstractions. I feel like shape and colour really stand out to me. I’m also on the autism spectrum so I feel like that’s just something that’s always been visually stimulating to me. Colour and shapes have always been something that helped me calm down. I find a lot of joy in stripping natural organic things down to their most basic form and making them almost barely legible so there can be room left for the interpretation of the viewer. 

You created the illustration for this year’s Edmonton Arts Council Shop & Services holiday ​‘Giving Local Feels Good’ campaign. Can you tell us about what you designed and how you connect with the campaign’s message? 

It was a fun experience and I’m really excited that I got to do it. My work is going to be out there engaging with more people than I would normally showcase my artwork to, which makes me a little nervous, but also is really exciting. 

There are so many amazing local shops in the city, and that’s where I really connect with the message. I have friends who own businesses in the city. There are so many amazing artists and creatives in the city. There’s so much opportunity to support local and to give people something that you know will last a lifetime or will have a much deeper meaning. And it will be more original than something that you’d get at a big box store. I’ve always felt that giving handmade gifts or locally made gifts is more important, especially during the holiday season. It’s a common thing in my family where we handmake each other’s gifts or do gift exchanges and buy everything from a farmers’ market or a flea market. It’s nice to carry on that tradition, even though I’m no longer living in my hometown, I’m still supporting local businesses out here as well. 

Tell us about a few local artists creating exciting work that you think more people should know about. 

Rashelle Campbell has always been an inspiration. She’s such an amazing person and her work is incredible. It’s on the next level. She’s doing so much for the art community. I did a mural project with her last summer for a basketball court for Wîhkwêntôwin School, and it was really a humbling experience being able to work with her and talk about her background. It’s really honouring to be a part of that community with her. 

Another is Evan Robinson; he does amazing illustrations. Jacob Dutton, does really good acrylic work, where it looks almost like out-of-focus film photography. He’s by far my favourite visual artist. Tiffany Lovett makes really amazing refurbished furniture and clothing out of upcycled materials. It’s really cool to see how many people in the city are using more eco-friendly methods of making artwork, they’re using thrifted materials or finding natural things like rocks or bricks to incorporate into their artwork. 

What’s next for you? Tell us a little bit about what you’re currently working on and what you’d like to do next. 

I’m working on a new body of work, which I’m excited to release. I’m planning on displaying about 25 to 30 paintings at a showcase next year at the Aviary. When I had my first art show there, I displayed just a handful of paintings. I’m aiming for around August but I’m not exactly sure yet when it’s going to be. I have been experimenting with new mediums and techniques, and I’ve been playing with texture a lot more. I feel like this past year I’ve been really growing into my style and I’m excited to share what I’ve been working on. 

Coda Girvan is one of the artists who will have their work featured at Latitude 53’s signature annual fundraising event Schmoozy. Join Latitude 53 for the opening reception this Friday, November 22 from 7 pm — late. 

About Coda Girvan

My name is Coda, I am a 27 year old self-taught Queer Métis artist currently living in Edmonton, Alberta (Amiskwacîwâskahikan). My work, across all mediums, tends to focus on organic matter— mostly figurative shapes. I have been creating art my whole life but began painting with acrylics on canvas at the age of twelve. Within the past five years, my artistic style has evolved to stripping down natural elements into their most minimalistic form. The majority of my work is inspired by typeface design, and more recently much of the shapes and colours used in my work have been influenced by my family history as a Métis person. I use my art as a tool to process and as a form of healing.