Photo: Meghan Weeks, 2024 Judson Beaumont Emerging Artist and Sam Carter Award in Applied Art + Design recipient
Meghan Weeks, the 2024 recipient of the Sam Carter Award in Applied Art + Design, was honoured with the Judson Beaumont Emerging Artist distinction for her bold, playful, and deeply intentional jewellery practice. A self-described artist, maker, and small business owner, Meghan is the creative force behind MDW Jewelry, a label that fuses storytelling, humour, and cultural memory into tactile, wearable art.
A member of Sucker Creek First Nation in Treaty 8 territory and a long-time resident of Vancouver, Meghan brings a unique blend of Cree teachings, childhood recollections, and natural inspirations to her work. Her pieces, often crafted from sterling silver and beads using methods like carving, beadwork, fabrication, and lost wax casting, aim to decolonize traditional jewellery-making while fostering conversation between the wearer and the work.
“I think it’s super important to have humor in my work,” she shared. “Part of healing is laughter. I love to make people laugh and if I can’t do it personally with my weird sense of humour, I can do it through jewellery. So if I find myself giggling at my bench, I’m hoping the person wearing it later will be doing the same thing.”
That spirit of joy and resilience is evident in her Survival Collection, a series of pieces that are both functional and humorous. One standout? A whistle cast in sterling silver from a chicken wing bone. “We ordered some chicken wings for supper one evening and I thought, ‘Maybe I can make a whistle out of one of these.’ I boiled it down and made a whistle out of the hot wing, which then became a sterling silver piece.”
The juxtaposition of the ordinary with the ceremonial, the humorous with the profound, is where Meghan’s work shines. Each piece tells a story rooted in lived experience, family tradition, and cultural knowledge. “To have my wearer feel that—that’s a beautiful thing. It means the translation is working. To think something up and then have someone else wearing it and feeling it—that’s kind of mind-blowing.”
Her artistic journey is shaped not only by her formal education—she holds a BFA in Media Arts from Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design—but also by her roles as a mentor, collaborator, and cultural contributor within BC’s vibrant Indigenous arts community. Since 2018, her work has been featured at festivals, galleries, and in private collections, reaching both Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences.
Receiving the Judson Beaumont Emerging Artist distinction was a deeply meaningful moment for Meghan. “It literally blew my mind. I cried—it’s an honour,” she said.
Through her artistry, Meghan Weeks is creating space for cultural memory, humour, and human connection to co-exist and she’s doing so with authenticity, curiosity, and a whistle made from a chicken wing.
Watch the short film on Meghan Weeks and her fellow awardees of the 2024 Sam Carter Award in Applied Art + Design.
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