“I hope that’s what the colouring book does more than anything else: inspires people to go out there and look at what inspired [the book],” says Vickers. “And go and see it for themselves and go and feel it for themselves.”

Well-known for his combination of Indigenous art and contemporary styles, Vickers’ first colouring book includes 42 pages of his iconic designs inspired by West Coast scenes.

Re-specting nature

Vickers was born in Greenville, B.C. to a father of Haida, Heiltsuk and Tsimshian ancestry and a mother of mixed European heritage. His artistic career has spanned over 40 years and includes many accolades. He received an Order of British Columbia in 1998 and an Order of Canada in 2007.

“I just drew, drew, drew, and everybody wanted drawings,” Vickers recalls always being an artist, even from a very young age. “I was always happy drawing and giving them to people.”

The artist shares that his first inspirations were oceanic-themed, such as fishing boats and fish. Other animals, like eagles and ravens, also made their way into these earlier works. This focus on nature stems from Vickers’ longstanding passion for the outdoors – one fueled by his grandfather.

It was his grandfather who taught him the value of ‘respect.’ Playing on the word “spectacle,” as in eyeglasses, Vickers’ grandfather emphasized the importance to ‘re-spect’ or ‘look again.’

“I would understand that means I hadn’t looked, so I should take another look and see what I see,” the artist shares. “So, I always respected nature, and the more I looked hard, the more I found things.”

Vickers’ ‘respecting’ of nature led to inspiring observations of “minks running across logs looking for something to eat,” tidal movements and even the weather. He recalls being taught “we are the land” – an idea he struggled to understand at first.

“It was explained to me: ‘your grandparents are all gone, and they were buried, so they’re part of the land, but they’re in your blood, they’re in your DNA, so they’re in your body,” he shares. “They are part of you, and they are the land, so the land is part of you.”

Art as storytelling

For Vickers, art is rooted in storytelling – a connection revered by his ancestors who recognized stories as a form of education. The artist advocates for a return to these humanizing connections, which also involves rebuilding relationships with nature.

“The more you become in tune with the land, the more you become in tune with yourself,” he shares. “As an artist, the more you’re in tune with who you are, and you respond to nature, the more inspiration comes.”

At the age of 20, Vickers learned that he was partially colourblind when his application to join the Royal Canadian Mounted Police was denied because of this condition. This colour blindness has only strengthened his artistic creations, as noted by a late art teacher and friend.

“When I discovered that, I went to my art teacher, who was a friend of mine until he left this world,” the artist recalls. “And Mr. West, said ‘Roy, no wonder you use the strong colours you use; you paint exactly what you see, and you don’t get all carried away with all of the little intricacies of various colours because you don’t see them.’”

Inspired draws from the archive of Vickers’ work; each piece is an inspired creation. Vickers believes that once the colouring starts, people will feel “something deep inside themselves.”

“Some of them may go and look at the actual image that I did to see what colours I used, and maybe copy those colours,” he says. “Or they will put their own colours in; whatever they do is exciting because they’re excited to work with the colouring book.”

For Vickers, there is power not just in the artist’s stories, but also those who consume and engage with the art. He affirms that everyone is an artist, despite society’s tendency to pull people away from creative endeavours.

“Pay attention to what gives you goosebumps, raises the hair on the back of your head, and work from that,” he advises. “Whatever you are inspired to do will be beautiful.”

For more information on the artist, see www.royhenryvickers.com.

For more information on Inspired, see www.harbourpublishing.com/collections/roy-henry-vickers/products/9781998526338.