Kwe’! Teluisi Apuksɨkn (Lynx). Me’tal wulo’ltioq? Ni’n na l’nu two spirit puoin’skw, Wagm~tkuk wettapeksit, Tiotia:ke tleyawi aqq wiki Guelph, Ontario.
Amanda Amour Lynx (she/they) is a queer, neurodivergent, Two Spirit, urban mixed Mi’kmaw interdisciplinary artist and facilitator currently living in Guelph, Ontario. Lynx was born and grew up in Tiohtià:ke (Montreal) and is a member of Wagmatcook FN.
As Indigenous Wellness Specialist in the Community Relations and Solidarity Department, they are super passionate about accessibility and creating programming centering experiences of Two Spirit youth, Black Indigenous youth, FNMI reconnecting youth– envisioning a future where we are confident and connected to culture and our stories.
They build community spaces of sharing, lateral love and kindness, committed to creating healthy futurities combining traditional knowledges, art-making, crafting, exploring social identity, pride and designing intentional space for reconnecting kin who feel unsure in conventional environments.
Lynx received a BFA from OCAD University in Drawing and Painting, minoring in Indigenous Visual Culture (2018), and a Social Services Worker Diploma from Humber College (2017).
Their art making is a hybridity of traditional l’nuk approaches with new media and digital arts, guided by the Mi’kmaq principles netukulimk (reciprocity) and etuaptmumk (two-eyed seeing), Lynx’s artistic practice discusses land and relationality, environmental issues, navigating systems and societal structures, sexuality, cultural and gender identity, Indigenous (L’nui’smk) language resurgence, quantum and spiritual multiplicities.
Amour-Lynx’s most recent project (2021) includes developing, launching and facilitating a 13-week program for Two Spirit and LGBT+ youth at Canadian Roots Exchange. Virtual Beginner Two Spirit Regalia Making Program allows youth 18-29 across Turtle Island to receive access to genderfluid ceremonial teachings, pow wow culture and beginner skills in developing and ideating their own dance and spiritual regalia items. Their most recent curatorial work includes Shapeshifters at Beaver Hall Gallery (Toronto) as part of the annual Bi+ Arts Festival, showcasing the art and experiences of bisexual and queer artists, their 2019 iteration highlighting Two Spirit identity. Their writing was published as part of grunt gallery’s Together Apart anthology (2020), and revue esse (2020). Lynx also worked as program assistant at Xpace Cultural Centre, a cultural programming hub serving emerging artists (Toronto) from 2016-2018. Their artwork has been featured in gallery spaces, billboards and publications nationally.
A totally random fact about Amanda is that they once fell asleep on top of an amp monitor at a VERY loud In Flames concert when they were 18.
