🚀Public Broadcasters Collaborate on Podcast Investigating Canada's Largest Art Crime

The renowned Indigenous artist Norval Morrisseau is the subject of a new original podcast from national public broadcasters ABC and CBC/Radio-Canada. The podcast delves into Morrisseau's life and explains how the shocking discovery of thousands of forgeries of his work sparked Canada's largest art crime investigation, threatening to destroy his legacy and posing larger questions about how Indigenous art is viewed and valued.

This new creative collaboration between ABC and CBC Podcasts was first announced earlier today at a special session (“Walking Together: Amplifying Indigenous Stories in Public Media”) of the 2024 Public Broadcasters International conference in Ottawa (PBI Ottawa 2024). It is the latest outcome of the continued Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between ABC and CBC/Radio-Canada, which encourages the co-development of programming to increase its impact and engage wider audiences.

“Given the importance of shedding light on Indigenous experiences and our common commitment to amplifying Indigenous voices, this extraordinary story of art, mystery and fraud will grip audiences globally. CBC/Radio-Canada is thrilled to collaborate with ABC to bring it to life and to advance awareness of Indigenous artists like Norval Morrisseau and of the deeply disturbing treatment they received.”

—Catherine Tait, President and CEO, CBC/Radio-Canada

“Indigenous art plays a deeply important role in understanding a culture’s rich history and sense of national identity and we are proud to work with CBC/Radio-Canada on this important story. We hope this series gives our audience a better understanding of the life and work of acclaimed Anishinaabe artist Norval Morrisseau.”

—David Anderson, ABC Managing Director

Raised on the Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek reserve in Northern Ontario and known as the “Picasso of the North,” Norval Morrisseau was one of the most celebrated Indigenous artists in the world. But a flood of fakes and forgeries have clouded his great accomplishments and eventually led to the biggest art crime investigation in Canadian history, revealing multiple fraud rings of shocking proportions. Host Adrian Stimson, a multidisciplinary artist and member of the Siksika First Nation, will tackle the questions: Who was Norval Morrisseau? Why did it take so long to weed out the fakes? Who’s to blame? And what does this say about how we value Indigenous art and culture? A story that begins as a true crime narrative will open up into a larger consideration of Indigenous art and artists in Canada, Australia and internationally.

Production begins on the podcast later this year, with a release targeted for the second half of 2025. Key Indigenous producers on the project include Stimson, Falen Johnson (CBC), Kyle Muzyka (CBC), Daniel Browning (ABC) and Rudi Bremer (ABC). The hybrid team will also include Zoe Tennant (producer on CBC’s Unreserved) and Veronica Simmonds (Senior Producer, CBC Podcasts). Chris Oke is Executive Producer at CBC Podcasts, with development by Falen Johnson and Ashley Mak, Senior Producer, CBC Podcasts. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports; Leslie Merklinger is Executive Director, CBC Podcasts; and Arif Noorani is Director, CBC Podcasts. The project is supported by Robert Doane, Senior Director, National Indigenous Strategy, and CBC/Radio-Canada’s Indigenous Office.

About ABC

For more than 90 years, the ABC has been an essential part of the fabric of Australians’ way of life as Australia’s national public broadcaster. Our purpose is to deliver valued services that reflect and contribute to Australian society, culture and identity. Our vision is to be the home of Australian

stories – accessible, bold, creative. We are Australia’s most trusted news source, providing local, national and world news to our audiences across our platforms from our network of 74 locations across Australia and around the world. Our distinctive and diverse entertainment and specialist content continues to delight audiences on our broadcast and on demand platforms. The ABC Australia television service supplies content to countries throughout Asia and Pacific region and our international radio service is available in the Pacific and Timor-Leste.

About CBC/Radio-Canada

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada’s trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages: Dehcho Dene Yati, Dënesųłıné (Chipewyan), Eastern Cree, Gwich'in, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, Sahtu Got'ine Godi, and Tłı̨chǫ (Tlicho). We also deliver content in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi and Tagalog, as well as both official languages, through Radio Canada International (RCI). We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.

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