Wally Dion Exhibition Opens at the School of Art Gallery

Wally Dion: a thousand tiny prayers opens at the School of Art Gallery on November 6, presenting a solo exhibition by Saskatchewan-born artist Wally Dion. Working primarily with textiles, Dion explores themes of strength, resilience, and interconnectedness, using acts of making as a way to consider how communities are formed, sustained, and held together.

Through textile-based portraits and star blankets, Dion foregrounds the generative power of plaiting, stitching, and assembly—processes that bind many parts into something stronger than any single element alone. His works reflect on Indigenous identity, cultural resistance, and solidarity, while also drawing connections across ecosystems and global struggles for justice and self-determination. Recent pieces incorporate rose motifs, shared symbols across Indigenous, Ukrainian, and Palestinian communities, offered as gestures of empathy and unity.

Vibrant and intricately detailed, Dion’s quilts and composite portraits merge synthetic fabrics, floral scarves, and translucent papers into layered reflections on care, connection, and collective strength. Dion is a member of Yellow Quill First Nation (Saulteaux) and has exhibited widely in Canada and the United States; his work is held in the collections of institutions including Remai Modern, the MacKenzie Art Gallery, the Portland Art Museum, and the Autry Museum of the American West.