Showcasing
diversity

Coca-Cola has announced that First Nations artist, Elliott Doxtater Wynn, has been selected for their Aboriginal Art Bottle Program. The Coca-Cola Aboriginal Art Bottle Program provides Aboriginal people across Canada the opportunity to experience the Olympic Spirit, while showcasing their art and culture to the world.

Fifteen artists were selected from over 100 Aboriginal artists across Canada. The artists, both amateurs and professionals, are First Nations, Inuit or Métis. The artwork will be unveiled regionally, across the country, throughout the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay and profiled during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. An independent adjudication panel conducted the review.

 “Our cultures are thriving and we want to share them with the world,” said Tewanee Joseph, Chief Executive Officer of the Four Host First Nations, Official Partners of the 2010 Winter Games. “When visitors come to the Games, they will experience First Nations, Inuit and Métis cultures in an unprecedented way, from works of art in prominent locations at venues to youth acting as torchbearers and flame attendants during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay. The Coca-Cola Aboriginal Art Bottle program is another exciting example of how the diversity of Aboriginal peoples will be showcased during the Games.”

“Coca-Cola’s innovative Aboriginal Art Bottle program is another important avenue for First Nations, Inuit and Métis to feel a personal connection with Canada’s Games in 2010,” said John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of the Vancouver Organizing Committee of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC). “It’s wonderful to see such a range of talented artists across the country unleashing their creativity to show the world a brand new way to look at the iconic Coke bottle and the limitless potential of Aboriginal art.”

“In keeping with our global and national goal of leveraging the Olympic Games to create a more positive reality for Canada, we wanted to create a program designed to profile the unique and talented Aboriginal community”, said Nicola Kettlitz, General Manager, Coca-Cola’s Olympic Project Team. This program will profile Native art to the world through Coca-Cola’s Olympic Games activation during Games-time. Visitors from around Canada and the world will have access to view the unique artwork.”

During the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, each bottle will be auctioned to collectors from around the world. The proceeds from the sale will go to the Vancouver 2010 Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund to support sport, culture, sustainability and education initiatives for First Nations, Inuit, and Metis youth across Canada. The auction will be run from February 15 – 25, 2010. Interested collectors may go online to www.icoke.ca to participate in the auction. In lead up to the auction, each artist’s work and story will be posted online as the artwork is unveiled across the country.

Elliott currently resides in Thunder Bay, Ontario. As a teenager he developed an interest in arts, which led to him attending Bealart Vocational Art School in London Ontario, where he received a 3-year arts certificate specializing in sculptural design (1996), as well as a degree in contemporary Aboriginal art history from Confederation College (1997). Furthermore Elliott holds an Honours Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Lakehead Univeristy. Elliott actively engages in his community of Thunder Bay dedicating his skills to working in the public school system as well as being a working artist. He recently received the Aboriginal Youth Achievement Recognition Award for his work in the community. Through his Art, Elliott aims at instilling the strength, beauty, and pride that should be associated with being and Aboriginal person.

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