Danielle Sachs
Northern News Services
Published Friday, April 05, 2013
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Celebrated Northern artist Mona Thrasher died April 1.
Thrasher was a painter, who was once commissioned to paint the stations of the cross for the Our Lady of Victory Church, commonly known as the Igloo Church, in Inuvik.
The late Mona Thrasher is a Northern Canada Artist, well known throughout Canada's Northwest Territories. Mona began painting in Inuvik in 1958 and has completed more than 800 paintings. - courtesy of YouTube
She was born in a bush camp in the Mackenzie Delta on Feb. 4, 1942. At 13, Thrasher lost her hearing in a hunting accident.
She was only 18 when she painted the stations of the cross. The 14 murals took her less than two months to complete.
Thrasher moved to Yellowknife in 1990 and stayed for the rest of her life.
Sally Joyce, manager at Northern Images, remembers being introduced to Thrasher shortly after Joyce arrived in Yellowknife.
"I could see she was a bright spirit," said Joyce. "We'd communicate very well through pen and paper. She was very bright and very smart."
Inuvik resident Rosemary Kirby met Thrasher at school and still has one of her paintings from years ago.
"She painted it for me here. It was before she left and it has someone hunting seals with a dog team," said Kirby. "She's such a good painter."
Joyce said Northern Images probably sells more Thrasher originals than originals from any other artist.
"So few people knew she was actually in Yellowknife," said Joyce. "When customers would find out they would often call and go visit her at Avens where she was staying."
At one point within the last five years, Thrasher stopped painting, said Joyce. It was then, even though she wasn't heavily involved in the Yellowknife artist community, people would stop by with paints and canvasses encouraging Thrasher to keep going, and she began painting again.
"I don't have any specific favourite painting, it was more her joyousness when she would bring in new work. That was a gift to us here at the gallery," said Joyce. "She was always so bright."
