Ryan Jason Allen Willert

Update: Nov 22

Here are some new pictures of Ryan at work. The murals are going to be fantastic!

Nov. 2017

Tuscany School is pleased to announce that Ryan Jason Allen Willert has returned to Tuscany School in the role of artist-in-residence. His presence has been made possible through funding from the Tuscany School Council. He will continue the mural work that he initiated last year which have become a part of the outdoor classroom, as pictured below:

To officially mark the start of his work at Tuscany School, Ryan performed two Smudge ceremonies with Tuscany students and staff. 

Smudging is a tradition common to many Indigenous peoples, which involves the burning of one or more medicines gathered from the earth. The four most common sacred medicines used in Indigenous ceremonies are tobacco, sage, cedar and sweetgrass. For this smudge, Ryan burned cedar. Students were not invited to inhale the smoke created from the smudge. Students sat in circular formation with Ryan facing the eastern most point. The ceremony itself was about 20-30 minutes long.

Tuscany students have already begun their work on the murals for this year, which are centered around the bear. Students will be adding bears to the mural while Ryan will work on the surrounding areas.

Stay tuned for updates!