Missy Knott Becomes First Curve Lake First Nation Resident Appointed to Ontario’s Art Council

Missy Knott has become the first person from Curve Lake First Nation to be appointed to Ontario’s Art Council (OAC) announced on Monday.

It has been more than fifty years since there was an appointee from the riding of Peterborough-Kawartha, with Missy Knott being the first ever from Curve Lake Frist Nation. Photo courtesy of MPP Dave Smith.

The OAC is the province’s primary funding body for professional artists and art organizations, made up of a 12-member volunteer Board of Directors according to a press release. They are community leaders with a variety of expertise in the arts, all appointed throughout the province. They foster the arts – both in creation and production- to enrich Ontarians' lives, communities and economy. The OAC's grants and services to professional, Ontario-based artists and arts organizations support arts education, Indigenous arts, community arts, crafts, dance, Francophone arts, literature, media arts, multidisciplinary arts, music, theatre, touring, and visual arts.

Knott is a singer/songwriter who gained popularity for her unique style and has released music since 2009. She uses her experience of growing up in Peterborough and her relations to Curve Lake First Nation and infuses the two community experiences into her music. She has returned to Curve Lake First Nation for her latest journey of starting a not-for-profit record label, Wild Rice Records.

The record label began in 2018 and helps with youth outreach, mentorship, recording and community connections. Missy uses her record label to guide Indigenous youth to follow their passions and talents. In providing the support she wished she had when she entered the music scene, she continues to inspire and promote the next generation of local artists. She has been active in Indigenous music, using her songs to speak to the matters close to her and her community. In 2017, she was nominated at the Indigenous Music Awards for EP My Sister’s Heart.

“I had the privilege of first working with Missy in the lead up to the Special Hockey International Tournament in Peterborough back in 2017,” said Dave Smith, Peterborough-Kawartha MPP. “I am so happy that someone who has used her talents to give back to our community as a positive role model is be appointed to the Ontario Arts Council.”

“It is an honour to sit on the Ontario Arts Council Board of Directors,” said Knott. “It is and has always been important to me to foster a creative vision and help artists realize their voice and their passions. Success is not an individual achievement but the result of learning, engaging, collaborating and hard work. The same is true of communities, and I am so happy to be a part of this one.”

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