Johnny Aitken

Elder Johnny Aitken is an interdisciplinary artist, actor, writer, carver, filmmaker, activist and educator. Johnny’s mixed ancestry includes Coast Salish, Scottish and Haida and he self-identifies as a Two-Spirit First Nations individual. Johnny’s twenty-foot-tall carving of an Honouring Figure stands in the Emma and Felix Jack Park on Mayne Island—a park named after his grandparents from the Cowichan Tribes. As a self-proclaimed “cross-cultural bridge builder,” Johnny enjoys collaborating with members of both Indigenous and Settler communities and has dedicated himself to a lifetime career in creating stories that lead to a place of healing. He lives on Mayne Island, British Columbia.