- Story by Darcy Nybo Photography by Don Denton

From West Shore Life + Style magazine

Say the word artist and several images come to mind: you might envision someone covered in paint, lost in thought or covered in clay or dust.

What doesn鈥檛 come to mind is a medalled ex-military woman, a mother about to get her master鈥檚 degree, and someone who has a passion for shining a light on concepts surrounding reconciliation. That, in a nutshell is Colwood鈥檚 Julia Trops.

Julia and her family moved to Colwood from the Okanagan in June of 2017. She immediately transformed her double garage into a workshop and display space. And she needed it: she has over 250 framed paintings, thousands of sketches, several clay sculptures, wax bronze works and hundreds of pounds of stone 鈥� one about to be transformed into a horse.

Prior to moving to Colwood, Julia lived for 16 years in the Okanagan, where she took Indigenous studies and learned how to speak nsyilxcen at the En鈥檕wkin Centre, an Indigenous Immersion School.

鈥淚 was accepted into the En鈥檕wkin Centre because of all the work I鈥檇 done in West Kelowna in bridging the two communities [Indigenous and non-Indigenous],鈥� she said.

While giving an artist talk at Summerland Art Gallery, Julia received a pamphlet about Culture Days 鈥� a fair held across Canada that focusses on promoting elements of culture.

鈥淎fter I got the pamphlet, I had a vision. I started talking to people at the Sncewips Heritage Museum and people on the Board of Trade. We [eventually] held our first Culture Days, which was launched at the museum and included many of the Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses in West Kelowna. It鈥檚 been running every year since 2014.鈥�

Julia鈥檚 path as an artist is nothing short of fascinating, and includes a stint in the military.

鈥淚 joined the military in 1985 and trained at CFB Cornwallis for basic training, then CFB Borden for training. After that, I moved to Moose Jaw, where I met my husband. I had walked away from being an artist after university in 1980, but even when I was in the military, I just couldn鈥檛 get away from creating art.鈥�

Julia and her husband started a family and by 1997, after a peacekeeping tour in the Sinai, she decided to quit the military and go back to school.

鈥淢y husband had finished his RCMP training and was posted to Alberta. I went back to school at the University of Lethbridge. I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts with Great Distinction in 2001. We moved to Kelowna in 2002 and I was accepted as an artist in residence at the new Rotary Centre for the Arts (RCA).鈥�

While at the RCA, Julia developed the Livessence Society for Figurative Artists and Models, a life drawing society.

鈥淚 created it because it was needed. You can鈥檛 have life art drawings without models and vice versa.鈥�

Julia became very active in her community, speaking out when she saw inequality and injustice. By the time she left the Okanagan in 2017, Julia had gained a Lifetime Achievement Award, had been interviewed on CBC radio numerous times, attended residencies in Italy and Spain, and become a Banff Centre for the Arts alumni.

鈥淚 was pretty burned out when I moved to Colwood. I hadn鈥檛 painted for two years, I was so consumed by community activism.鈥�

That fall she saw a photo online of a four-year-old girl from the Ma鈥檃m taglia-Tlowitsis and Namgis First Nations in northern Vancouver Island. The child was holding a sign that said, 鈥淔ish Farms Out.鈥�

鈥淚 contacted her parents and they gave permission to paint her. I gave the painting to them as a thank you, following the Indigenous protocol of giving and receiving. The first one [of anything] is always given away.鈥�

Julia continues to paint for the love of painting and sometimes a photograph from one of the First Nations sites she follows online will catch her eye.

鈥淚 saw this photo of an Elder from Chilliwack, and I loved the intensity of his expression, and the fact that he was not in regalia, just everyday clothes. I created a painting from that photo. I鈥檝e contacted him to see if he wants it.鈥�

She adds, 鈥淭here are a lot of layers to non-Indigenous artists painting Indigenous peoples and I am very aware of this 鈥� very cautious, very respectful. I ensure I am not crossing the line into cultural appropriation. It boils down to the fact that people use Indigenous imagery without understanding the traditions, the stories and everything behind it. I make sure I paint with awareness and respect. I always consult and never paint without asking.鈥�

When she鈥檚 not in her studio creating art, Julia is finishing her Royal Roads University master鈥檚 degree project, which includes a paper, an art exhibition and a video. The subject matter is dear to her heart: the hegemonic white society and its impact on community and culture. She鈥檚 focussed on finishing her project and is in the process of finding a space for her one-woman art show, Bridging Cultures, in 2019.

鈥淚鈥檓 proud of the fact I am very mindful of the work I do. From serving in the military to being a master鈥檚 student 鈥� being mindful is present in everything I do. Many artists paint to be commercially viable. I am not one of them. While I have sold a great deal of my work, my goal is to simply create. With each piece of art, I learn something about myself.鈥�

Find more about Julia Trops and her art at