Team

The original dreamer of tall Feathers: Artist, builder, inventor, and 3D Computer Graphics Consultant, Mr. Ziegler is an award-winning designer with experience in industrial design and architectural design. He creates sculptures in steel paper and wood. Mr Ziegler studied at the Alberta College of Art and Design and the University of Calgary. He has more than 40 years of related experience since graduating from the University of Calgary. Tall Feathers has led him on a journey discovery the connections to Indigenous wisdom and his own spiritual values.  In November 2023 he as transferred in ceremony a the Blackfoot name Mohkinstsis Pookáá, Elbow Child.  Elder Maurice Little giving him this name to support his work of inspiring the creative spirit in everyone in the community who come to Tall Feathers.

Harley Crowshoe is a member of the Piikani Nation with extensive experience of service delivery in rural communities across Alberta, BC, and the NWT. With a career spanning policing, government programming, and healthcare, Harley is dedicated to improving Indigenous health and fostering culturally safe healthcare services. His work focuses on understanding and addressing the historical impacts of residential schools and colonial policies, aiming to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous healthcare experiences and outcomes. Harley’s commitment to truth and reconciliation drives his efforts to create a culture of mutual trust and healing.

Harley is a member of the National Advisory Committee on Residential Schools, Missing Children and Unmarked Burials.

Harley is the recipient of the Order of Canada, the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and Commemorative Medal for the 125^th Anniversary of Canadian Confederation. He was also inducted as an Honorary Chief of the Piikani (Blackfoot) Nation – including a traditional transfer of a sacred eagle headdress.

Alan Fortune has worked as a professional photographer for over 30 years. He studied photography at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Then he rounded off his training by apprenticing with some of the top photographers in New York City, such as John Madere, Michael O’Neill, and Co Rentmeester.

After moving to Canada and forming Alan Fortune Photography, he worked with clients such as The Jim Pattison Group, Forzani Group, CN Rail and Tourism Canada. Alan offers that unique perspective to communicate the story and message.

With his sensitivity and understanding of what hits the viewer’s senses, Alan is passionate about working alongside Tall Feathers to share the stories of Indigenous wisdom.

Patricia Lortie, visual artist, was born in Quebec. She studied industrial design and business administration in Montreal.  In 1995, she moved to Calgary and studied at the Alberta University of the Arts.

Her practice includes painting, sculpture, installation and art education. She exhibits in commercial and public galleries across western Canada. In 2010, she represented Alberta at the Vancouver Olympics Cultural Olympiad. In 2021, she was part of Présence des Femmes, an exhibition of important francophone women artists from Western Canada. In 2022, she took part in the International Contemporary Art Symposium of Baie-Saint-Paul in Quebec. Her installation The Keepers, created in a residency at the KOAC, is currently touring public galleries in Western Canada. She is one of the founding artists of Tall Feathers.