CCCAC New Exhibition: Indigenous Artists,Telling Stories April 8- May 2, 2026
Cynthia Cote
126 Quincy Street
Hancock, MI 49930
Contact: Cynthia Cote (906) 482-2333
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 4/3/26
New Exhibition: Indigenous Artists,
Telling Stories
Kerredge Gallery April 8- May 2, 2026
Opening
Reception: Thursday, April 9 6-7:30
HANCOCK, MI – The Copper Country Community Arts Center's Kerredge Gallery has a new display of drawings, paintings, comic books, beadwork, and regalia. Bryan Welsh, Jamie Brotherton and Journey Brotherton all have connections to the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. Their work is informed and deeply enmeshed in traditional ways and teachings. They share their stories through their art
Bryan Welsh is an Anishinaabe/Ojibwa artist of the Wolf Clan from Baraga, with additional Lakota ancestry through his father’s lineage. His artistic journey began early in life, guided by intuition, observation, and a deep connection to land, spirit, and community. Today, Bryan paints not only as an act of personal expression, but as a form of cultural transmission and community connection. His work is rooted in Anishinaabe ways of knowing, where art is relational—interwoven with story, land, language, and spirit. Through his paintings and teachings, he shares knowledge, encourages creative confidence, and inspires others to find and express their own artistic voices. As both an artist and educator, Bryan Welsh continues to uplift community through art, carrying forward teachings of creativity, resilience, and cultural continuity.
Jamie Brotherton is a self taught comic book artist who creates abstract paintings and comic book art. His illustration influences include Mobius, Waterson, and Barry Windsor-Smith. Jamie incorporates his contemporary native experience into his visual storytelling, fusing humor and philosophy into his work, while sharing the importance of dreams, spiritual connection, and growth. He states, "As an artist I have always felt like an alien in this world, seeing what others cannot. Paintings I make show the hidden world that lies behind what our eyes can see, the realm of spirit. I find a space between waking and the dreaming, a crack there between the worlds, to bring in a vibration from these astral and akashic realms. The source of inspiration for my comic book stories comes from lucid dreams mingled with real life, encoding symbolic and archetypal techniques into a nonlinear tale to enlighten and entertain, it is a treatise of my soul.”
Journey Brotherton is an indigenous fashion designer and a full time seamstress. She creates contemporary traditional art and clothing. She also creates traditional style regalia including moccasins, ribbon skirts, shirts, jingle dresses, and bandoliers. The design and construction of regalia components take many hours from the design phase to execution. Some pieces such as moccasins entail fine stitched beadwork with tiny glass seed beads in intricate designs. Her special interests include travel, powwow dancing and spending time with her family.
Everyone is welcome to join us for the opening reception on Thursday, April 9th 6-7:30. Refreshments will be served. Indigenous Artists, Telling Stories will be on display in the Kerredge Gallery April 8- May 2, 2026. The Kerredge Gallery is located in the Copper Country Community Arts Center at 126 Quincy Street in Hancock. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday 11-6 and Saturday 10-2. For more information call (906) 482-2333 or visit the website www.coppercountryarts.com
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photos:
Bryan Welsh
Bear by Bryan Welsh
Jamie Brotherton
comic book cover by
Jamie Brotherton
Journey Brotherton
beadwork earrings
by Journey Brotherton
Founding Director and Curator
Copper Country Community Arts Council
126 Quincy Street Hancock, MI 49930
