Luke Parnell is an artist of Haida and Nisga’a heritage who, through the use of traditional techniques from the Northwest Coast, investigates contemporary social issues. Traditional Northwest Coast art was centred on the convergence of intangible and material wealth: an individual’s rights and privileges and the objects that represented them. Parnell’s work continues to address ideas of rights, ownership, and privilege in the context of his own experience. Graduating with a bachelors degree from the Ontario College of Art and Design, and later gaining a masters from Emily Carr University of Art + Design (graduating with distinction), Parnell was the recipient of the 2012 Winsor Gallery Graduate Student Award. The National Gallery of Canada has collected Parnell’s work and he has exhibited in various galleries across the country.
BC Achievement is an independent foundation established in 2003 that honours excellence and inspires achievement in British Columbia.