〰️ "... a stunning mix of art styles at play throughout the book" - JAJ review by Comics Beat

〰️ "Yahgulanaas’s vivid art is testament not merely to resilience but to vitality and contemporaneity" - Globe and Mail

〰️ "The art demonstrates an adaptive insistence on creativity and beauty, even as it acknowledges disruptions in tradition" - The Seattle Times

〰️ "... a stunning mix of art styles at play throughout the book" - JAJ review by Comics Beat 〰️ "Yahgulanaas’s vivid art is testament not merely to resilience but to vitality and contemporaneity" - Globe and Mail 〰️ "The art demonstrates an adaptive insistence on creativity and beauty, even as it acknowledges disruptions in tradition" - The Seattle Times

YAHGULANAAS

Louis Riel paints Picasso

Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas is a contemporary artist whose work asserts personal and cultural identity that maintains integrity while dissolving hard and uncomfortable barriers. Influenced by iconography, both from his Haida culture and contemporary Asian visual culture, he has created an artistic practice that crosses diverse cultures, generations, and disciplines in search of accessibility and engagement as a counterpoint to stratification and isolation. Institutional collections include the British Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Seattle Art Museum, the Humboldt Forum Foundation, and Vancouver Art Gallery.

Read more about the artist

EXHIBITIONS & EVENTS

EXHIBITIONS & EVENTS

August 2025 MNY Studio Newsletter
Featured
"Bone Box" in Vancouver, BC
Jul 1
"Bone Box" in Vancouver, BC

Bone Box is on permanent display at the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver, B.C. The interactive installation incorporates Haida iconography on 12 plywood panels that rotate.

Copper from the Hood in London, UK
Nov 1
The British Museum
Copper from the Hood in London, UK
The British Museum

On view now at the British Museum.

The British Museum
DAM Dancing Crane in Denver, CO
Dec 25
Denver Art Museum
DAM Dancing Crane in Denver, CO
Denver Art Museum

On view now in the Denver Art Museum.

Denver Art Museum
JAJ Mural in Berlin, Germany
Sep 16
Humboldt Forum
JAJ Mural in Berlin, Germany
Humboldt Forum

The JAJ mural is on permanent display at the Humboldt Forum Foundation in Berlin. It became part of the permanent collection in 2021 and was inaugurated during a city-wide event - a festival, a conference, a think tank and an open-air club – from the Schlüterhof to the roof terrace.

Humboldt Forum
Daalkaatlii Diaries in Paris, France
Jun 6
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
Daalkaatlii Diaries in Paris, France
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac

The Musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac has purchased nine works in the Daalkaatlii Diaries series for their permanent collection. These have been put on display on the main floor of the museum. The series was inspired by the historical narrative of a significant flood event in a tidal slough and expansive tidal grass flats. This area is known as Daalkaatlii, named after the magnificent sandhill crane (Antigone canadensis).

Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
We who have known tides: Vancouver Art Gallery exhibition
Nov 6
We who have known tides: Vancouver Art Gallery exhibition

November 6, 2025 - April 12, 2026

The Vancouver Art Gallery’s group exhibition We who have known tides: Indigenous Art from the Collection brings together significant works by Indigenous artists in their collection. The Gallery unveiled CLAN HAT, a major multi-year commission from the studio of Haida artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas.

A Brush with Yahgulanaas: Exhibit in Seattle
Jan 8
Stonington Gallery
A Brush with Yahgulanaas: Exhibit in Seattle
Stonington Gallery

In January 2026, Stonington Gallery will host a solo exhibition of Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas. The works in this exhibition span watercolor and ink drawings and paintings from across Yahgulanaas’ career. Early projects such as A Tale of Two Shamans (c. 1999) explore Haida cosmology through scenes of transformation and consequence, while later works, including Packing Old Bill’s Pole (2015), reflect on artistic legacy and the tension between art and ethnicity.

Stonington Gallery
All Events

STUDIO UPDATES

STUDIO UPDATES

Featured
Canada Post Unveils Stamp Featuring Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas’ RED

On June 6, 2025, Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas gave a special artist talk at the Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, celebrating the museum’s recent acquisition of nine paintings from his Daalkaatlii Diaries series. This event marked the first time these works were displayed as part of the museum’s permanent collection.

Read More →
Artist Talk with MNY at Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac

On June 6, 2025, Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas gave a special artist talk at the Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, celebrating the museum’s recent acquisition of nine paintings from his Daalkaatlii Diaries series. This event marked the first time these works were displayed as part of the museum’s permanent collection.

Read More →
MNY at the Audain Symposium

Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas co-presented with Anthony Shelton at the Audain Symposium at the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) at the University of British Columbia (UBC). The three-year symposium focuses on Indigenous cultural heritage.

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Conference: Beyond the 2 Solitudes

Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas participated in Conference: Beyond the 2 Solitudes, a gathering that explored the intersections of Indigenous and non-Indigenous cultural perspectives through dialogue, research, and artistic practice.

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Supporting Victoria Hand Project Work in Ukraine

The Victoria Hand Project (VHP) is a non-profit organization that aims to improve access to prosthetic care worldwide.

Read More →
All Updates

PRESS RELEASES

PRESS RELEASES

Featured
Comics Beat
Graphic Novel Review: JAJ – A HAIDA MANGA by Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas
Comics Beat

The level of interaction and incredible achievement really gives insight into what a comic book can be.

Comics Beat
Canadian Interiors
MOCA’s latest exhibition combines North Pacific Indigenous narratives and Japanese cartooning
Canadian Interiors

The exhibition features works by Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas that pose questions about culture, identity, and histories.

Canadian Interiors
The Canadian Press
A tale of history and humanization unfold in colourful ‘Haida Manga'
The Canadian Press

On a ship with torn sails, tossed by churning waters, the first of many Europeans needing rescue arrives along the coast of what is now British Columbia, before a Haida canoe brings an outstretched paddle and the warm light of salvation.

The Canadian Press
The Tyee
With Haida Manga, a Study in Compassion
The Tyee

A new graphic novel by artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas explores BC’s founding years with generosity and soul.

The Tyee
CBC
What drives visual artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas to tell stories through comics?
CBC

Artist's latest work, JAJ, follows historical figures including Norwegian explorer Johan Adrian Jacobsen

CBC
All News