Coast Salish Artist
lessLIE (Leslie Robert Sam) is from Duncan, B.C., on Vancouver Island. His decolonized artist's name "lessLIE" is both an expression of his artistic inspiration and part of his political activism. He quotes Picasso as saying "art is a lie that tells the truth." In the spirit of Trickster traditions, lessLIe is living this perspective of Picasso.
lessLIE began to study Coast Salish art in 1995, initially inspired by his cousin Joe Wilson and later by a number of other Coast Salish artists including Susan Point. lessLIE has a Bachelor of Arts degree in First Nations Studies from Vancouver Island University (Nanaimo, BC) and is currently working on a Master of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Victoria (Victoria, BC), with a focus on Coast Salish art. As a component of this graduate degree, he has also worked at Thunderbird Park Carving Studio. His work is featured at the Alcheringa Gallery in Victoria (www.alcheringa-gallery.com/).
