Artist looks to preserve a piece of Mill Market history

A two-spirit Métis artist with ties to Sault Ste. Marie wants to find a new home for a piece of the Mill Market’s past. 

Rihkee Strapp was one of the artists behind the Mill Market Mural, an installation made up of three mural panels that explored the social ecology of the Sault’s downtown through art. One of the mural panels has since gone missing, while another was heavily damaged and cannot be salvaged.   

But Strapp wants to use the remaining mural — a woodland-style canoe inspired by the memory of nationally acclaimed, two-spirit Métis artist Cecil Youngfox — with the goal of creating another mural project of some sort in the Sault. 

“It has damage on it, but it’s very superficial. I can absolutely fix it,” they said of the canoe mural. “I think it would be really fabulous to keep Cecil’s canoe on the river, and preferably I’d love for it to go to a place that would have the archival knowledge.” 

Youngfox, a native of Blind River, Ont., died from cancer in 1987. He was 44 years old at the time of his death. 

The internationally known artist once had his work showcased in a collection of stamps released by Canada Post, and many of his original paintings can still be found in various municipal buildings throughout his hometown of Blind River. 

But what many folks don’t know, Strapp said, is that Youngfox spent years working at Algoma Steel in Sault Ste. Marie.    

“I think that’s so significant as well, because I grew up in the Sault for 25 years and I didn’t know that,” they said. “I like to consider myself someone who is incredibly involved in the arts, and to not know that person was so significant in the Sault was really shocking.

“I think it’s really important to preserve that story and that legacy.”

The Youngfox-inspired canoe mural that once graced the exterior of the Mill Market was initially created, Strapp said, because his niece had a dream where he asked to have a canoe included as part of the mural project.   

And in some respects, dreams are treated with a sense of reverence within Indigenous culture.  

“When I think about the ceremonial protocols that we have now today, a lot of them would come from a community member’s dream,” Strapp said. 

Strapp ultimately wants to connect with a potential project partner that “understands and respects the significance of this image coming from this dream, in this way.”

“At the bare minimum I just need a wall where Cecil can be safe and respected,” they said.

Those interested in a potential Cecil Youngfox mural project in Sault Ste. Marie are encouraged to connect with Strapp via email at rihkeestrapp@gmail.com.