NEW: Interview with Lil’wat Medal designer, Levi Nelson

During the opening ceremony, I witnessed beautiful black and yellow designs on center stage. These designs plus the endeavor to showcase the Invictus Games in Vancouver was thanks largely in part to four Coast Salish Nations: the Lil̓wat7úl (Líl̓wat), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱_wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh). So, what are these games about? And why was holding it in British Columbia a breakthrough for the games?

Invictus Game’s 10^th Anniversary

February 16^th, 2025 marks the end of the Invictus Games here in Vancouver. This year celebrates the 10^th anniversary of its beginnings. Prince Happy initiated the games shortly after his return from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. In 2013, a visit to the Warrior Games moved him to create something for the service men and women globally. The “Foundation offers a recovery pathway for international wounded, injured, and sick servicemen and women (WIS). We collaborate to provide opportunities for post-traumatic growth: enabling those involved to reclaim their purpose, identity, and future, beyond injury.”[1]

[1] https://www.invictusgamesfoundation.org/aims-and-origins

This year was monumental in many ways. Not only being a decade old but B.C., has been close to the young royal’s heart since he departed from Britain. Vancouver Island was a refuge for Prince Harry and his wife, Megan Markle. They took time away from their duties tumultuous time shortly after marriage. Another monumental move was banding together with four Indigenous communities, whose land the games would take place on. The Invictus Games Committee partnered with the four host nations of Whistler starting in 2023.

The Four Artists

Initially, the Invictus Games Committee made a call for an artist designer but this was revisited. Instead, the committee reframed the artist submission to include all four host nations remembering Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, . As a result, Levi Nelson – Lil’wat Nation; Olivia George – Tsleil-Waututh Nation; Mack Paul – Musqueam Nation; and Ray Natraoro – Squamish Nation were selected from the submissions in fall 2023. The design team started meeting immediately via Zoom. They started to brainstorm how they would depict the design utilizing Indigenous symbols. They resolved to utilize the symbolism of the paddle as it represented “the central symbolic figure in which to speak about healing the warrior spirit.” says Levi Nelson in an interview with Adrenalin Magazine.

Lil̓wat7úl (Líl̓wat) Artist and Designer, Levi Nelson

Levi Nelson was raised in the mountainous region of Mount Currie northeast of Whistler. Nelson establishes that the land moves in and out of his artwork much like the waters his great-grandfather used to set traplines on. For Nelson’s master’s project from Columbia University, an iteration of fractured strips of cultural symbolism are pieced back together. The influence on these artworks is referenced by his auntie’s discussion about “the indigenous languages being a shattered mirror that was broken into pieces.” Now through language revitalization, many nations are breathing new life into their hidden languages after “being interrupted” says Nelson. As a contemporary artist, Nelson establishes that he pulls from all references both Indigenous and non-Indigenous to tell his stories.

Journey to Invictus

Nelson is a passionate and motivated artist. He never expected to be where he is today. But as circumstances can be during an extremely low point in his life, he decided to apply to Emily Carr College of the Arts on a whim. Even though, his portfolio consisted of a few pieces and one being a charcoal drawing on a pizza box, the school saw potential. They were not wrong and during graduation year, he won the prestigious IDEA Art Award.

But he didn’t stop there, soon after he applied to the MFA program at Columbia University in New York. He was accepted. In 2022, he won a mid-career scholarship to assist him in his final project. Nelson has been unstoppable. While at Columbia he heard about the Gondola Gallery Project at Whistler Blackcomb. He applied and won. His painting “RED” can be seen wrapping one of the gondolas there. Inevitably when the call out for artists arose for Invictus, it stood to reason he would apply again. Success!

Sky’s the Limit

Nelson’s design featured on the Gondola at Whistler Blackcomb, was such a proud moment for him and his nation. Where once his people were being hidden away, now, they are being raised to the sky. For this Indigenous artist contributing to the Invictus’ Games main design was just the beginning. He also crafted the medal designs. As well, he was invited to create a painting to bridge the games from Canada to Birmingham, the next host city. The painting resulted from his trip to Birmingham sponsored by Air Canada. The painting titled “Journey” seems fitting.

So, what new journey can we anticipate seeing for this amazing artist?