Norval Morrisseau was the first Indigenous Canadian artist to be recognized as a serious artist in the art world. His art was valued in the tens of thousands of dollars by the turn of the century. When pianist Kevin Hearn of the Barenaked Ladies discovered his beloved painting was a fake, he filed a lawsuit. However, as Jamie Kastner's documentary reveals, there was a cottage industry in fake Morrisseaus that thrived unchecked for years, feeding on greed, exploitation, racism, and contempt.
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Norval Morrisseau was the first Indigenous Canadian artist to be recognized as a serious artist in the art world. His art was valued in the tens of thousands of dollars by the turn of the century. When pianist Kevin Hearn of the Barenaked Ladies discovered his beloved painting was a fake, he filed a lawsuit. However, as Jamie Kastner's documentary reveals, there was a cottage industry in fake Morrisseaus that thrived unchecked for years, feeding on greed, exploitation, racism, and contempt.
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