Artist File
Indigenous Artist Renée Condo’s Beaded Works Express Joy and Interconnectedness
Published on June 4, 2025
Equally inspired by Mi’gmaq ideations and quantum physics, Montreal artist Renée Condo delves into these subjects in her art practice, creating two- and three-dimensional works that incorporate beads. Renée is of Mi’gmaw First Nation ancestry and applies her ancestral worldview, one of connectedness and interdependence, to her practice. With a particular interest in the concept of pema, which describes movement and relationships between things, Renée makes joyful pieces that are immediately open and accessible to the viewer.
In beaded works signified by a use of colour and imagery that blurs abstraction and figuration, Renée celebrates joy, being with community and allowing space for duelling cosmic and scientific forces. Beading has been a part of First Nations life in Canada for an estimated 8,000 years, both culturally and as a means of trade. Renée puts her own spin on the medium. Her “beads” are larger than traditional ones, about the size of a grape or peppermint. She rolls these in gesso and paint to give them their colour before applying them to her works. Rather than threading the beads together, she affixes them onto a canvas, inventing her own beading technique.
Giju’ (2024). 713⁄4″ x 60″.
Renée’s imagery regularly includes florals. In Giju’, for instance, the motif she consistently uses is her representation of mntu, which is the life force or energy inherent in all things. “The shape was inspired by traditional beadwork’s simple floral patterns and by particle collisions in quantum physics,” says Renée. “I also wanted the form to remain open to multiple interpretations, evoking animal footprints, berries and other natural objects.” She plays with this motif often, experimenting with different colours and scales.
Nujisa’se’wamugwa’teget: Inversion (b) (2024). 72″ x 60″.
In Nujisa’se’wamugwa’teget: Inversion (b), for instance, the result is incredibly different. What sets Renée’s work apart is the medium itself — it’s such a unique form of image-making and has a pleasing, tactile feel in person. Viewers often comment that they want to eat the paintings! Whether it’s the size of the beads or the way the paint makes them look like candy, the works conjure visceral reactions. “My interest in interconnectedness is deeply rooted in a Mi’gmaq understanding of the world and creation,” says Renée. “The bead, when viewed from one perspective, appears as a single unit — from another, it forms an infinite loop.”
Glooscap (2024). 48″ x 40″ (per panel).
In Glooscap, for example, Renée created a monumental work comprising eight panels, each depicting a loose landscape of sun and rain. According to Mi’gmaq tradition and stories that have been passed down, Glooscap is the first standing person — a central figure in the Mi’gmaq creation story. Here, Renée depicts Glooscap as the environment: “In this work of eight panels, references to the sun and rain in multiple orientations — north, east, south, west, upside down and right side up — evoke the seven sacred directions of the creation story and reflect the deep interconnections between Glooscap, the atmosphere, the environment, the knowledge keepers, and the teachings that emerged from them,” she says.
Pemitg MFT I (2023). 13″ sq.
Storytelling is woven throughout her work and, while the imagery itself appears straightforward, layers of memory and biography are intertwined. In some pieces, she conjures core childhood memories while, in others, she alludes to Indigenous stories. She encourages the meaning of the works to extend even further to appreciation and gratitude, for the land, for food and for family. I love how Renée has the ability to take something complex and distil the concept to its most simple form so that the viewer can find immediate connection and appreciation. She has a unique way of amplifying meaning without overcomplicating sentiment.
Renée has a BFA and MFA from Concordia University. She’s been a long-list finalist for the Sobey Art Award, and has received several grants and scholarships. Renée’s pieces have been acquired by public and private collections including RBC, Scotiabank, TD Bank and McCarthy Tétrault. Renée is represented by Blouin Division in Montreal and Toronto. Her work starts at $2,000.
Diana Hamm of WK ART is a Toronto art adviser. A graduate of Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London, U.K., Diana focuses on contemporary art and discovering emerging artists. She also advises private clients on acquisitions and collection building.
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