Some might call artist Shirley Moorhouse a late bloomer

Arts·Q with Tom Power

Though the Labrador-based Inuk artist has been creating art for more than three decades, now, at age 69, she’s finally having her moment.

The Labrador-based Inuk artist has been creating art for more than three decades. Now, she’s having her moment

CBC Arts · Posted: Aug 27, 2025 8:08 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour ago

Shirley Moorhouse is a multifaceted heritage crafts artisan, fabric artist, printmaker and painter. (Jessica Winters)

Some might call artist Shirley Moorhouse a late bloomer

Shirley Moorhouse was 65 when she decided to pursue a Master of Fine Arts. Though she’s been creating art for more than three decades, now, at age 69, she’s finally having her moment.

This year, the Labrador-based Inuk artist was longlisted for the prestigious Sobey Art Award, a major solo exhibit of her work is currently on display in St. John’s, and one of her wall hangings will be shown at the National Gallery of Canada come October.

Moorhouse joins guest host Gill Deacon to talk about how her grandmother set her on course to become an observer and a creator when she was just a newborn, the technique behind her wall hangings, and how it feels to be in the prime of her creative life. Check out some images of her work below.

Textile artwork on black wool stroud with smoke-tanned caribou hide and beadwork. Two abstract, faceless humanlike figures stand under a glowing moon with stylized mountains and swirling stars in the background. Caribou-like shapes and abstract animal forms appear across the dark ground, evoking absence and memory. — Where Are the Caribou? Where Is the Snow? Another Once Upon a Time Story, 2025. Black wool stroud, smoke tanned caribou hide, beads, various materials. Collection of the artist. (Shirley Moorhouse)

Textile artwork on black wool stroud with smoke-tanned caribou hide and beadwork. A large, abstract golden figure sweeps across a purple and pink horizontal band, suggestive of motion or transformation. Below, small caribou and animal shapes are scattered across a dark field. Celestial forms, including circular starbursts, punctuate the night sky, blending cosmic and earthly imagery. — Hairbrush and Mirror, 2007. Black wool stroud, smoke tanned caribou hide, beads, various materials. Indigenous Art Collection, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. (Shirley Moorhouse)

Brightly colored textile composition on black wool stroud. At the centre, orange coral-like branches sprout ulu (crescent-shaped knives) as if they were blossoms. Surrounding the structure swim white fish and an eel-like creature. A whimsical white fish with blue accents floats above, while a golden jellyfish hovers nearby. The border is stitched with alternating blue stripes, framing the aquatic dreamscape. — Underwater Ulu Garden, 1996. Black wool stroud, various materials. Collection of Yvonne Moorhouse, Red Deer, AB. (Shirley Moorhouse)

The full interview with Shirley Moorhouse is available on our podcast, Q with Tom Power. Listen and follow wherever you get your podcasts.

Interview with Shirley Moorhouse produced by Cora Nijhawan.

Source link