EA Studios Calgary

10/15/2026

It started with a phone call.

Norval Morrisseau called our founder, Galal Helmy, to tell him he'd dreamt of painting for him in the Canadian Rockies. That dream brought him to Jasper.

Galal sponsored Morrisseau from 1985 to 1989 at the Maligne Canyon Tea House, home to EA Studios at the time. Morrisseau painted in the studio on the main floor and lived in a room upstairs. What began as patronage grew into a lasting friendship between the two men.

One of the works from those years is the 22-foot mural now on view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, the first time the public has seen it since 1986.

"Morrisseau Masterwork" runs until January 3, 2027.

Photos by: Bob Gravelle, courtesy of the Thunder Bay Art Gallery

View more Morrisseau originals on our website: https://www.eastudioscalgary.com/product-category/norval-morrisseau-originals/


Thunder Bay Art Gallery

10/12/2026

At Thanksgiving, we are reminded that art, like a shared meal, is a place where generations meet. A painting passed from parent to child, a sculpture chosen together for a new home, an original work that honours Indigenous and North American traditions - each piece carries stories that live long after the table is cleared.

From our family to yours, thank you for inviting these works into your homes and for allowing us to play a small part in the connections, memories and heritage you create together.

10/09/2026

A page from The Art of Norval Morrisseau, 1979. The printed text is Morrisseau describing himself as a shaman-artist, writing that his work will keep speaking across language and nationality.

Around it, in his own hand, is a note for Galal Helmy, who sponsored him and gave him a place to paint in Jasper at EA Studios. Shaman Prayer, he titled it: a question about walking the face of the earth from one lifetime to the next, answered in the same breath. A bird in the white space beside the paragraphs. His name signed again beneath the printed one.

"To the beloved soul, and friend, and companion."

10/05/2026

Some colours you have to see in person.

After decades rolled up in storage an untitled Norval Morrisseau mural, part of the Helmy family's private collection, is back in the light at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, and the colour is as bold as the day it was painted. Morrisseau's signature Woodland linework runs across all 22 feet of canvas, bringing together adults, children, animals, birds and spiritual beings in a single scene drawn from the natural world.

"Morrisseau Masterwork" is on view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery until January 3, 2027.

Have you been to see it yet? If so, tell us what stood out to you.

Photos by: Bob Gravelle, courtesy of the Thunder Bay Art Gallery


Thunder Bay Art Gallery

10/01/2026

"If I could sum it up into one word, it would be unity."

That's how Joseph Helmy, Director of EA Studios, describes this Norval Morrisseau mural in a recent conversation with journalist Bob Covey of The Jasper Local.

The untitled painting was created at the Maligne Canyon Tea House in Jasper, where Joseph's father, our founder Galal Helmy, sponsored Morrisseau and became his close friend. The 22-foot canvas remained in the family's care for decades and was last publicly seen 40 years ago.

In the interview, Joseph shares how the relationship between his father and Morrisseau began, and why the mural's return to public view means so much to his family. Read the full story at The Jasper Local.

"Morrisseau Masterwork" is open to public view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, from now until January 3, 2027.

Read the full article here: https://www.jasperlocal.com/2026/09/29/a-morrisseau-painted-in-jasper-returns-to-public-view-after-40-years/


The Jasper Local Thunder Bay Art Gallery

EA Studios is a Calgary-based art studio focused on carrying Indigenous art paintings and artifacts. We welcome you to shop our collection online and see our pieces in person at our studio by appointment only.

09/30/2026

Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

We pause to remember the children who were lost to the residential school system, to recognize the Survivors, and to acknowledge the families and communities living with its effects generations later.

Reconciliation asks more of us than one day a year. It asks us to listen, to learn the truth, and to keep learning.

09/29/2026

"... In many ways, we feel like this is the early period of Morrisseau starting to work bigger on more epic, larger canvases and really explore some of his artistic genius.”

That's how Matthew Hills, Executive Director of the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, describes this mural. Many of Morrisseau's best-known large scale works are made up of several panels. The untitled painting, now on display in Thunder Bay, is a single canvas, 22 feet wide, which was last publicly seen around 1986.

"So for us this was a chance to do something exciting and unveil a work that hasn't been seen in 40 years, for the public in Thunder Bay, in a region that Morrisseau called home," Hills told CBC.

"Morrisseau Masterwork" is open to public view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, from now until January 3, 2027.


Thunder Bay Art Gallery

09/25/2026

EA Studios director Joseph Helmy speaks at the unveiling of this Norval Morrisseau canvas, now on view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery as part of Morrisseau Masterwork, open until January 3, 2027.

Scale is one of the things that doesn't translate online, and this piece proves it. If you're in Thunder Bay, or can get there, go see it in person.


Thunder Bay Art Gallery

09/23/2026

One slide wasn't going to be enough for this piece.

At 22 feet wide and 10 feet tall, this Norval Morrisseau mural needs the whole carousel, and even then you'll want to see it in person.

This piece's story begins in Jasper. Morrisseau lived above the Helmy family's Tea House and painted in the studio on the main floor, where he created this mural for our founder, Galal Helmy. It has stayed in the family's care ever since and hasn't been shown publicly since 1986.

Now it's on loan to the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, in the region Morrisseau called home.

"Morrisseau Masterwork," opened September 18, 2026 and runs until January 3, 2027 at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery.


Thunder Bay Art Gallery

09/22/2026

22 feet wide. 10 feet tall. Unseen by the public since 1986.

Morrisseau created this mural for our founder, Galal Helmy, in Jasper, painting in the studio on the main floor of the Helmy family's Tea House while he lived in a room above. It has remained in the family's care ever since.

It is now on loan to the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, in the region Morrisseau called home. In his signature Woodland style, the mural gathers adults, children, animals, birds and spiritual beings in a single scene drawn from the natural world.

"Morrisseau Masterwork," opened September 18, 2026 and runs until January 3, 2027 at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery.


Thunder Bay Art Gallery