Native artists use Coke seal for Winter Olympic art

VANCOUVER – For the 2010 Winter Olympics, Coca-Cola offered its world-famous trademark to 15 talented North American Native artists so they could create artwork combining Aboriginal skill and the Coke brand.

The 15 giant pieces of art were to be fashioned after the Coke bottle and auctioned to collectors from around the world. Proceeds from the sale will go to the Vancouver 2010 Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund to support sport, culture, sustainability and education initiatives for First Nations, Inuit and Metis youth across Canada.

The sale was expected to run from Feb. 15-25. Interested collectors were to go online at www.icoke.ca to bid. Each bottle was expected to raise $2,000 to $3,000 for the 2010 AYLF.

Leading up to the auction, each artist’s work and biography were to be posted online as the bottles were unveiled across Canada.

Jackie Traverse, an Anishinabe from Lake St.Martin, was one of more than 100 Native artists to enter artwork for the initiative, and one of 15 artists chosen for it.

Traverse said the art project presents another opportunity to showcase the richness of her people’s culture and traditional values. Her Coke bottle and Raven sculpture were slated for display at several venues in Vancouver during the Games.

Traverse is a recent graduate from the University of Manitoba and works in all mediums from sculpture, mixed media and video. She is widely known in art communities across Canada as her paintings, drawings, documentaries and sculptures speak to realities of being an Aboriginal woman. . More of Jackie's biography and art can be viewed at www.bisonpromotions.com

Canadian Premier Gordon Campbell and John Furlong, CEO of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the Olympics, said they were pleased at how Coke’s project is helping highlight the involvement of Aboriginal people in the Games.

“Coca-Cola’s innovative Aboriginal Art Bottle program is another important avenue for First Nations, Inuit and Métis to feel a personal connection with Canada’s Games in 2010,” Furlong said. “It’s wonderful to see such a range of talented artists across the country unleashing their creativity to show the world a brand new way to look at the iconic Coke bottle and the limitless potential of Aboriginal art.”

Tewanee Joseph, CEO of the Four Host First Nations, which are official partners of the 2010 Winter Games, said Aboriginal cultures are thriving and he wants to share them with the world.

“When visitors come to the Games, they will experience First Nations, Inuit and Métis cultures in an unprecedented way, from works of art in prominent locations at venues to youth acting as torchbearers and flame attendants during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay,” Joseph said. “The Coca-Cola Aboriginal Art Bottle program is another exciting example of how the diversity of Aboriginal peoples will be showcased during the Games.”

Nicola Kettlitz, general manager of Coca-Cola’s Olympic Project Team, said in keeping with Coke’s global and national goal of leveraging the Olympic Games to create a more positive reality for Canada, the company wanted to create a program designed to profile the unique and talented aboriginal community.

The Coca-Cola Co. has been associated with the Olympic Games since 1928 and is the longest continuous corporate supporter of the Olympic movement. Coke’s sponsorship supports National Olympic Committees in more than 200 countries to help athletes train and compete.