A Musqueam and Tsimshian artist, Gray created a version the Canucks crest inspired by Coast Salish art and incorporated three Musqueam colours into the design: tumuth, sunset yellow, and black.
"To me, creating this jersey was an opportunity to represent my family, art, and culture," Gray said. "It also gives me a chance to do that on a massive scale, while reminding everybody about the current significance of orange, and the orange shirt day movement. To be the person who designed the logo for the game that brings a ton of Indigenous people together to celebrate themselves as well is a huge honour. I hope that Indigenous people can feel all of us being represented, and be as excited as I am to see this beloved local team rock some of our art and music."
Gray's journey into art and hockey can be attributed to his family.
Art was something that he pursued every chance he got in high school, including an Emily Carr scholarship for a summer program when he was 17. After attending nursing school but realizing that wasn't for him, he was drawn back towards the arts and rejoined his Tsimshian dance group. That's when he took the lifelong teachings of his uncle, an artist and carver who taught Gray everything he knows about his Tsimshian side, and began to apply them to his own art style.
But now that he is living in Salish territory, it's been important for Gray to build upon what his uncle Mike taught him and incorporate more Salish design elements.
"I'm drawn to making Salish art visible as well now," Gray said when speaking about his creative process. "The shapes are all trigons and crescents and generally follow the design rules of Salish art."
The killer whale is also an important symbol to Gray, as that's his clan animal on his Tsimshian side.
"Indigenous art and Indigenous culture is not something of the past," Gray said of the perception of Indigenous art. "We're still making art and it's still evolving, it's still changing, it's growing. I'm hoping people realize that this is Salish art."
Gray's hockey influence came from another uncle, Roddy, who "could skate before he could walk." Uncle Roddy recently passed away, but Gray knows that he would be "so freaking hyped for all the stuff he's] done for hockey." Gray dedicates much of his work with the Canucks in his honour.
Both of his uncles will surely be proud of the spotlight Gray's jersey will bring to the Indigenous children who were victims and survivors of residential schools.
"It's really important for people to remember that it's not just a few days," Gray said of the jersey's "Every Child Matters" shoulder patches. "This is our family. Our life."
To support Gray's work, you can visit his website at
[gaysalishart.com
and Instagram at
@gaysalishart.
