Tianna Marie Lynn Delorme’s reflections on canvas
Our lived experience shapes the way we navigate the world. For visual artist Tianna Marie Lynn Delorme, her identity as an Indigenous woman informs the stroke of her paint brush. Her art holds reflections on the lasting colonial effects that have impacted her family, her community, and herself. In the spring of 2025, she completed her bachelor of fine arts and her minor in women’s and gender studies through the University of Regina (U of R).
The making of an artist
Growing up in Cowessess First Nation, Delorme was known to be the artist in her family. She said that she would often be the person they run to when it came to any art projects.
“As early as kindergarten, I remember drawing all the time […] and getting an award for [being] the most artistic in class,” she said.
She was the first out of her family to attend university and it wasn’t a surprise that she went on to pursue the fine arts. Before university, the art classes accessible to her during secondary school back on her reserve were limited. There were challenges and learning curves for her once she started to pursue her degree. Delorme said that she did not know some of the basics of art that a student was already expected to know from their classes in high school. Due to the new and unfamiliar environment, feelings of self-doubt also started to arise for her.
“Coming from a reservation school […] made me feel very different, like I was far behind some people,” said Delorme.
She found comfort as her university career progressed, as it opened doors for new opportunities to learn and connections to be made. She shared that taking women’s and gender studies classes encouraged her to be open-minded and to challenge things.
Her studies gave her the insight that things must change from the way they are for herself and for other Indigenous people in the current system.
I wanted to capture the feelings of ugliness towards that house and then setting it on fire.” -Tianna Marie Lynn Delorme
Confronting realities through art
In her early days of drawing and painting, Delorme recalled not thinking deeply about the themes that surround her art. When it came to her first installation for a studio class, she decided to research and explore Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two Spirit (MMIWG2S).
“I was doing internet research about it and seeing how many were from Cowessess, as well,” she said. “When I was reading more into it, I was so angry[…] I just felt this pain in my heart. It’s so unfair and it keeps getting swept under the rug.” This experience drove Delorme’s desire to raise her voice about the realities that Indigenous people face.
When viewing her art, spectators might find relatability. “[Expect] to feel things when you see my piece, [whether] that’s making you uncomfortable, angry, [or] sad,’’ she said.
For her non-Indigenous audience, Delorme asks them to reflect, speak up, and be an ally to Indigenous people. “If you’re non-Indigenous, question yourself [and] the things around you,” she said. “Even though we don’t have residential schools now, we’re still facing ignorant people making comments, we’re still facing physical and emotional [hurt] towards us.”
One of her creations, entitled “They Are Watching” is an example of Delorme’s confrontation of the fear she and many Indigenous women experience. The continuous feelings of surveillance and the need to watch over their back is blatantly shown in this piece.
As a child, Delorme was taught to be vigilant of people and her surroundings, not only because she was a kid but also because she is Indigenous. “Constantly, I’m in a state of always having to watch over my shoulder […] and being mindful of what could happen if I’m going to get an encounter with somebody that thinks I’m stealing,” she said.
“Forever Burning’’ is another painting that came out of Delorme’s art class. She considers this piece to be very personal, as it tells the story of an infamous abandoned house in Cowessess.
Growing up, stories of the priests that once lived in it became a warning for her and the community to stay far away from the boarded-up house. “The priests that used to live [there] would take girls from the school,’’ she said. “If one of the girls became pregnant and if they birthed the baby, they would take the babies and put them in the furnace in the basement.”
After graduating high school, Delorme said that the house was set on fire and it no longer stood where it was. She decided to use her feelings towards the house and depict it in the midst of burning.
“I wanted to capture the feelings of ugliness towards that house and then setting it on fire,” she said. “You see the corrosion it’s putting onto the land. I wanted to do the sky and the land [in] a whimsical and storyteller-esque style [to] say this is untouched by that and [look] how beautiful it is.”
When I was reading more into it, I was so angry[…] I just felt this pain in my heart.” -Tianna Marie Lynn Delorme
Moving forward
Although Delorme works with heavy themes in her art, she finds it to be part of her healing. It becomes a way for her to navigate difficult conversations, especially as someone who often has a hard time sharing her feelings.
“Even though I’m not saying it, I’m showing it,” she said. “I am slowly getting these heavy pieces off my chest, they’re still there, but the load is getting easier because I’m making [them].”
Now that Delorme has graduated from university, she is a part-time artist, a barista, and an art assistant. Currently, she is working on a project with Sâkêwêwak First Nations Artists’ Collective Inc.
It is a grant project that will be shown at the annual Storytellers’ Festival in February. She is beading a full-length letter addressing her father. This is a personal abstract piece where the letters aren’t legible but her emotions can be seen and felt from the piece. Delorme wishes to create enough artwork to put on a solo exhibition and move towards working as a full-time artist.
