Gerald Kuehl

Gerald Kuehl is a self-taught Canadian photographer and pencil artist who was born in Ontario and grew up in Pinawa, Manitoba, northeast of Winnipeg. After studying at the University of Manitoba, he returned to drawing, which had been a high school interest. In 1997, a trip to the First Nations community of Manigotagan, Manitoba, initiated a long-term project that would take him to remote areas of the province and eventually to Nunavut.

Kuehl's work focuses on creating graphite pencil portraits of Indigenous Elders, particularly those who were born on the land and remember traditional ways of life. His process involves conducting interviews with his subjects to record their stories alongside their portraits. This approach has resulted in documentation spanning over two decades of travel to various Indigenous communities across Canada.

His projects have been compiled into published collections. "Portraits of the North" was published in 2017, followed by "Portraits of the Far North," which documents his work in Nunavut beginning in 2002 when he crossed the 60th parallel. In 2017, he began a third project, "Portraits of the Plains," focusing on the Dakota/Sioux and Saulteaux/Ojibwa of the Canadian plains. His Far North work represents thirteen years of travel in Nunavut, hundreds of interviews with Elders, and extensive time at the drawing board.

Kuehl's portraits have been displayed in museums, art galleries, and cultural centers, as well as in First Nations and Inuit communities. His work is part of a traveling exhibit organized by the Manitoba Museum that has been active for fifteen years. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife Sara and has two grown sons.