Culturally-specific cards just tip of the iceberg

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Imagine a special greeting card that says '"tansi," or one for high school graduates with a birch bark-biting and a picture of an eagle feather tucked inside. Or how about a golden wedding anniversary card for kokum and mosom with blessings from the Creator . . . Done in quillwork and buckskin.

As one of the first people in Canada to recognize a need for culturally-specific greeting cards, calendars and other related products for Aboriginal people, Deborah Parker Fiddler has done more than just imagine. After realizing that there was a real niche in the retail market for the traditional culture of First Nations people, she decided to take a strong stance to promote Aboriginal artwork and design with what she calls "respect, truth and honor."

It all began a few years back when she first became interested in learning more about her own Native heritage, a vision quest that would lead her to cross paths with many talented Aboriginal people from all walks of life.

As a self-taught business women with 12 years of background in sales, gift store management and dealing with wholesalers, she realized that most Native products came in from the United States, with little or no input from Canadian artists.

"As a Native women learning about my own heritage, I discovered that we had a rich culture with a long, proud history of art design, and that there was no reason why it couldn't be promoted with a high profile on both domestic and international markets," said Parker Fiddler.

The Germans, Japanese and Australians, fascinated by the Native culture, go crazy over this stuff, she explained, and there are many avenues to expand upon with Native people's own designs besides cards, calendars, posters and giftware.

"I pictured in my mind a house done in upscale Aboriginal design, decor and accesories, including blanquettes, bedding, showercurtains, wallpaper and stencils, with a real market out there for our Indigenous artists and a chance to break into the market with an Aboriginal theme and run with it."

Once you have an artist's transparency to work with, she added, you can put it on just about anything.

She asked herself why there couldn't be a large wholesale business venture, owned, controlled and operated by Aboriginal people to promote their own culture, targeting both the domestic and corporate sectors.

Diverse Visions became the answer, her own home-based company, one that she said would promote pride and quality and give Native artists more exposure.

She pointed out that an Aboriginal person would be the best person to promote the culture with flair, understanding and most importantly respect . . . respect for the artists and artisans who create this work and the cultures it represents.

"Through my work with Diverse Visions, I've met many people who helped me on my path and with my quest to learn more about my own culture, and I hope that I can give this gift back," she said.