不良研究所

Projections Art Exhibit

Projections is a pilot digital exhibition aiming to strengthen the inclusion of underrepresented groups within the Faculty of Engineering through art, as well as to increase access to art for the entire 不良研究所 community.

Interested in taking part in future exhibits? eidea [at] mcgill.ca (Email us here)


Projections: Kwe

Projections: Kwe is the inaugural exhibit in the Projections series. The project was initiated by the Engineering Undergraduate Society鈥檚 Indigenous Inclusion Committee (IIC) with the hopes of increasing visibility, representation, and inclusion of Indigenous students and cultures in the Faculty of Engineering, and developed in collaboration with the Faculty of Engineering鈥檚 Dean鈥檚 office, the Provost鈥檚 Indigenous Initiatives Office, and 不良研究所鈥檚 Visual Arts Collection.

The exhibit features 30 artworks from a variety of First Nations, Inuit and M茅tis communities, curated by the Indigenous Inclusion Committee from 不良研究所's Visual Arts Collection. It is the first exhibit of its kind at 不良研究所.

In concert with Projections: Kwe, the Faculty of Engineering has installed two permanent artworks by Benjamin Chee Chee, Afternoon Flight and Friends, on the first floor of the McConnell Engineering Building.

Leo Yerxa, Untitled (Young Couple Under the Snow), ca. 1980s-90s, watercolour on paper. Gift of Francine Pag茅 Charron. 漏 Estate of the Artist.
Projection screen showing artwork by Leo Yerxa, Untitled (Young Couple Under the Snow), ca. 1980s-90s, watercolour on paper. Gift of Francine Pag茅 Charron. 漏 Estate of the Artist.

Curatorial Statement

Curatorial Statement in Mohawk

Ratinonhsak茅tskwas, ratir谩hstha tsi n铆:ioht tsi akanonhsak茅tskwen, t谩non ratirihwahser贸n:nis akanakerahser谩:ien nikaio鈥檛enhser貌:tens A鈥檔owar猫:ke n茅:鈥檈 Onkweh贸n:we rononhonts脿:ke ronterihwahtenti脿:tha.

Ohstonter矛:tshera kahi谩:ton aka鈥檚h谩tsteke, aontaiako鈥檔ikonhratih茅ntho, t谩non enwaht茅tia鈥檛e tsi tenhatihthar贸nnion ne Faculty of Engineering, sok ki鈥 enw谩:ton ne ronterihwai茅nhstha t谩non rotiio鈥檛茅nion ahonnonhtonni贸n:ko ne nah貌:ten enkakar贸nnia鈥檛e ne raotiio鈥檛茅nhsera, iah kwah nek ne tsi kan谩then, nek tsi 貌:ni ne Onkweh贸n:we raotirihw脿:ke ohontsakw茅:kon ne Kor谩hne

Ne tekaw茅n:nake 鈥淥nkweh贸n:we Raononh贸ntsa鈥 n茅:鈥檈 tsi n铆:ioht tsi aiei茅n:tere鈥檔e tsi Kor谩hne oh贸ntsa tehotihsni茅:鈥檕n t谩non ratinaker谩hkhwa ne Onkweh贸n:we ne tewen鈥檔iawe鈥櫭﹉seron niiohser谩:ke, arenh谩tien tsi nikaw茅n:nake r贸ntstha ne kakor谩hsera. Ne kenh n铆:ioht, akw茅:kon ne oh贸ntsia A鈥檔owar猫:ke Onkweh贸n:we raon谩:wen, iah kwah nek ne ronatk脿:wen (ceded) t贸ka鈥檔i iah tehonatk脿:wen (unceded) oh贸ntsa, t谩non 貌:ni, akw茅:kon kaio鈥檛enhsera鈥檚h贸n:鈥檃 A鈥檔owar猫:ke, t贸ka鈥 ratinonhsak茅tskwas, ratir谩hstha tsi n铆:ioht tsi enwatenonhs贸n:ni, ratirihwahser贸n:ni akanakerahser谩:ien, t贸ka鈥檔i ionterihwaienhst谩hkhwa aoio鈥檛茅nhsera t谩non kanonhs贸:ton, tsi n铆:ioht ne ionterihwaienhstahkhwa鈥檏贸:wa, Onkweh贸n:we rononhonts脿:ke kanonhs贸:ton.

Nek tsi, iotk脿:te iah tekaienter茅:鈥檈n k铆:ken tsi nii谩:kon k铆:ken nihotiio鈥檛enhser貌:ten, arenh谩tien tsi kwah 铆:ken tsi rotikaronni脿:tha ne Onkweh贸n:we tsi rononhnh茅tie, ne 貌:ni ne oh贸ntsa t谩non iah 贸n:kwe t茅: ne ne kont矛:teron. Tsi rotiio鈥檛谩tie ahatik贸wanahte tsi nii贸:ken ne Onkwehonwehn茅ha tsi n贸n:we ne Faculty of Engineering, t谩non tsi ratirihw谩hsere ne 不良研究所 a贸:wen t茅keni tewen鈥檔i谩:wer niiohser谩:ke iorihw脿:ke ne Onkweh贸n:we tsi tehatihwihsh谩tste t谩non rotiianerahst茅n:nis, ne Indigenous Inclusion Committee (IIC) tahont谩hsawen t谩non wahatinenhr矛:ne tsi onht茅ntia鈥檛e tsi ronterihwatster铆hstha, Projections: Kwe.

Tsi rotiia鈥檛ar貌:ron ne Onkweh贸n:we ronterihwai茅nhstha tetsar贸nhkwen oti贸hkwakon nok a鈥櫭:ren n贸n:we ne Faculty of Engineering, ne IIC wahontia鈥檛ar貌:roke ne ahatir谩:ko ne nah貌:ten enwatena鈥檛贸n:ni 贸n:wa wenhniser谩:te. IIC wah贸n:nehre tsi aonh谩:鈥檃 tiorihow谩:nen ne ahatir谩:ko nia鈥檛ekaio鈥檛enhser谩:ke ne ne nia鈥檛eioht谩nion tsi ron贸n:ni, n茅:ne ron贸n:ni tsi nii谩:kon nia鈥檛茅:kon nikanakerahser谩:ke Onkweh贸n:we, Othore鈥檏ehr贸:non nok M茅tis nithon茅:non. Ne k铆:ken sewah茅n:ton, ne karihwar谩hston, ne kar貌:ron ne karahst谩nion, tsi n铆:ioht ne Norval Morrisseau ra贸:wen Shaman Surrounded by Ancestral Spirit Totem (1977), kaia鈥檛ar贸nnion, tsi n铆:ioht ne Nadia Myre ak贸:wen Meditations on Red (2013), t谩non kahkarat谩hkwen, tsi n铆:ioht ne Tytoosie Tunillie ra贸:wen Sedna. K铆:ken nihotii茅:ren ne ki鈥 ahatirihw谩:kenhste tsi nia鈥檛茅:kon nihotirih貌:tens ne Onkweh贸n:we ohontsakw茅:kon ne A鈥檔owar猫:ke, ne 貌:ni ne Onkwehonwehn茅ha rononni谩nions tsi na鈥檛eiotkan贸n:ni nok na鈥檛eiohsw谩hthe.

IIC ronati脿:tare ronhsk谩:neks tsi rotikwat谩kwen ne Projections: Kwe kan贸nhskon ne McConnell Engineering kan贸nhsote n茅:鈥檈 enkarihwahn铆:rate tsi Onkweh贸n:we ne ne ronterihwai茅nhstha ne Faculty of Engineering s茅nha enh贸nttoke tsi s茅nha enhatikw茅:konke, ne kwah tsi i贸:ken t谩non kaienter茅:鈥檈n, t谩non tsi iah tehononkweh贸n:we tenhat铆:ta鈥檔e nok ahonnonht贸nnionhwe tsi nenwatkahtho鈥檛shero鈥檛茅nhake t贸ka鈥 s茅nha ahatikw茅:konke, ahonaterih贸n:take, t谩non tahatiien谩sheke, t谩non tsi nenkai茅:ren ne tho nonkw谩:ti nahonti茅:ra鈥檛e 贸n:wa wenhniser谩:te.

Indigenous Inclusion Committee
ronterihwahster铆hstha ne Projections: Kwe

Curatorial Statement in English

Engineering, architecture, and urban planning projects in North America take place on Native land.

The sentence is written to be strong, to provoke thoughts, and to initiate conversation within the Faculty of Engineering, so that students and staff can think about the impacts of their projects, not just for urban areas, but also for Indigenous Peoples everywhere in Canada.

The phrase 鈥淣ative land鈥 is a way of acknowledging that the land in Canada has been taken care of and inhabited by Indigenous Peoples for centuries, regardless of the legal terminology that colonial institutions such as governments may use to describe them. In this way, all land on Turtle Island is Native land, not just ceded or unceded territory, and moreover, all projects on Turtle island, whether they be engineering, architecture, urban planning, or even academic projects and institutions, like universities, are located on Native land.

However, this often goes unacknowledged within the field at large, despite these projects having profound effects on the lives of Indigenous Peoples, as well as the land and non-human beings who reside within. In an effort to increase the visibility of Indigeneity within the Faculty of Engineering, and in keeping with 不良研究所鈥檚 bicentennial themes of Indigenous resilience and excellence, the Indigenous Inclusion Committee (IIC) began and led the establishment of the curation, Projections: Kwe.

As a collective of Indigenous students both within and outside of the Faculty of Engineering, the IIC came together to select the pieces of art that you see on display today. Of the utmost importance to the IIC was choosing works from different creative mediums, made by artists that hail from a variety of First Nations, Inuit and M茅tis communities. Featured before you, for example, are a collection of paintings, such as Norval Morrisseau鈥檚 Shaman Surrounded by Ancestral Spirit Totem (1977), photographs, like those of Nadia Myre鈥檚 Meditations on Red (2013), and sculptures, like Tytoosie Tunnillie鈥檚 Sedna. This was done to highlight the long-standing diversity of Indigenous Peoples across Turtle Island, as well as the rich and vibrant nature of Indigenous creativity.

Members of the IIC hope that the establishment of Projections: Kwe within the McConnell Engineering building will both ensure that Indigenous students already in the Faculty of Engineering feel more included, particularly in terms of visibility and acknowledgment, and that non-Indigenous students will take a moment to imagine what a more inclusive, responsible, and cooperative field can look like, and what steps can be taken to move in such a direction today.

Indigenous Inclusion Committee
Curators of the Projections: Kwe exhibition

Curatorial Statement in French

En Am茅rique du Nord, les projets de g茅nie, d鈥檃rchitecture et d鈥檜rbanisme sont r茅alis茅s en territoire autochtone.

Cette phrase percutante vise 脿 provoquer la r茅flexion et 脿 amorcer un dialogue 脿 la Facult茅 de g茅nie. Les 茅tudiants et les membres du personnel sont ainsi appel茅s 脿 r茅fl茅chir aux r茅percussions de leurs projets, non seulement sur les zones urbaines, mais aussi sur la r茅alit茅 des Autochtones de partout au Canada.

Par le terme 芦 territoire autochtone 禄, nous prenons nos distances avec la terminologie juridique 茅tablie par les institutions coloniales, notamment les gouvernements, et mettons en 茅vidence le fait que, pendant des si猫cles, les Autochtones ont habit茅 les terres du Canada et en ont pris soin. Ainsi, les terres de l鈥櫭巐e de la Tortue sont bien plus que des terres c茅d茅es ou non c茅d茅es; ensemble, elles forment un territoire autochtone. Qui plus est, tous les projets r茅alis茅s sur l鈥櫭巐e de la Tortue, qu鈥檌l s鈥檃gisse d鈥檕uvrages de g茅nie, d鈥檃rchitecture ou d鈥檜rbanisme, ou m锚me de projets ou d鈥櫭﹖ablissements d鈥檈nseignement, comme des universit茅s, se trouvent en territoire autochtone.

Pourtant, cette r茅alit茅 est souvent pass茅e sous silence, m锚me si les projets ont de profondes r茅percussions sur la vie des Autochtones, ainsi que sur les terres et les 锚tres vivants qui les peuplent. C鈥檈st dans une volont茅 d鈥檃ccro卯tre la visibilit茅 de l鈥檌dentit茅 autochtone 脿 la Facult茅 de g茅nie, et inspir茅 par les th猫mes de la r茅silience et de l鈥檈xcellence des peuples autochtones du Bicentenaire de l鈥橴niversit茅 不良研究所, que le Comit茅 de l鈥檌nclusion autochtone a mont茅 l鈥檈xposition Projections: Kwe.

Le Comit茅 de l鈥檌nclusion autochtone, form茅 d鈥櫭﹖udiants autochtones de la Facult茅 de g茅nie et d鈥檃utres facult茅s, s鈥檈st r茅uni pour s茅lectionner les oeuvres d鈥檃rt que vous pouvez admirer aujourd鈥檋ui. Le Comit茅 s鈥檈st fait un point d鈥檋onneur de choisir des oeuvres r茅alis茅es dans diff茅rents m茅diums par des artistes provenant de diverses communaut茅s des Premi猫res Nations, des Inuits et des M茅tis. Vous d茅couvrirez des peintures, dont Shaman Surrounded by Ancestral Spirit Totem (1977) de Norval Morrisseau, des photographies, notamment Meditations on Red (2013) de Nadia Myre, et des sculptures, dont Sedna de Tytoosie Tunnillie. Par ses choix, le Comit茅 souhaitait mettre en lumi猫re la diversit茅 qui caract茅rise depuis longtemps les peuples autochtones de l鈥櫭巐e de la Tortue, ainsi que la richesse et le dynamisme de la cr茅ativit茅 autochtone.

En montant l鈥檈xposition Projections: Kwe dans le Pavillon de g茅nie McConnell, les membres du Comit茅 de l鈥檌nclusion autochtone souhaitaient renforcer, par la visibilit茅 et la reconnaissance, le sentiment d鈥檌nclusion chez les 茅tudiants autochtones de la Facult茅 de g茅nie et voulaient inciter les 茅tudiants allochtones 脿 imaginer un milieu plus inclusif et plus solidaire, et 脿 r茅fl茅chir aux mesures 脿 prendre pour s鈥檈ngager dans cette voie.

Le Comit茅 de l鈥檌nclusion autochtone
commissaire de l鈥檈xposition Projections: Kwe


Visit the exhibit space

Projections: Kwe is open to the public. We invite all to come view the exhibit and engage with the stories behind each work.听

Location: McConnell Engineering Building Lobby (3480 University Street)


Launch


Acknowledgments

Projections: Kwe was realized by means of an inter-university collaboration between the Indigenous Inclusion Committee, the Faculty of Engineering Dean鈥檚 Office, the Provost鈥檚 Indigenous Initiatives Office, and 不良研究所鈥檚 Visual Arts Collection. The project would not have been possible without the efforts of many people within these units and across 不良研究所.

Many thanks to Isabelle Pr茅vost-Aubin (M茅tis Nation), Dallas Karonhia'no:ron Canady-Binette (Kanesatake'ro:non, Kanien'keha:ka), Kayleigh Spencer (James Bay Cree), Jocelyne Couture (M茅tis Nation of Ontario), and Jonas Henderson (Kalaaleq) from the Indigenous Inclusion Committee; Dicki Chhoyang from the Indigenous Initiatives Office, Dana-Marie Williams (Mi'kmaq/Pottawatomi) from First Peoples' House and Carole Brazeau (Algonquin Anishinabe); Wendy Owens, Michelle Macleod, Hannah Deskin, Catherine Galbraith, and Greg Houston from the Visual Arts Collection, a part of 不良研究所鈥檚 Rare and Special Collections, Osler, Art and Archives (ROAAr); and Chidinma Offoh-Robert, Antonella Fratino, Shannon Gao, and Leela Baldeo from the Faculty of Engineering for working together to make Projections: Kwe a reality.

Thanks also to Thomasina Phillips (Mohawk Nation) from First Peoples鈥 House and Stew McCombie and Jonathan Roy from Multimedia for their help with the launch event, as well as Nigel Ayoung-Chee, Shawn McCollum, Sara Di Stefano, Eric Binette, Martin Lemieux, and Andre Fillion for their IT support.

Special thanks to Elder Geraldine Standup (Mohawk Nation) and Dayna Danger (M茅tis/Saulteaux/Polish), 不良研究所鈥檚 Mellon Indigenous Artist in Residence supported through ISCEI, for participating in the launch.

Kwe title design by听Dallas Karonhia'no:ron Canady-Binette. Exhibition slide layout and design by Shannon Gao and Michelle Macleod. Photos and video featured in launch video taken by听Jonas Henderson, Antonella Fratino, and Michelle Macleod.

Indigenous Inclusion Committee. left to right: Jonas Henderson (Kalaaleq), Dallas Karonhia'no:ron Canady-Binette (Kanesatake'ro:non, Kanien'keha:ka), Isabelle Pr茅vost-Aubin (M茅tis Nation), and Kayleigh Spencer (James Bay Cree)
Image by Antonella Fratino.
Indigenous Inclusion Committee [left to right: Jonas Henderson (Kalaaleq), Dallas Karonhia'no:ron Canady-Binette (Kanesatake'ro:non, Kanien'keha:ka), Isabelle Pr茅vost-Aubin (M茅tis Nation), and Kayleigh Spencer (James Bay Cree)] at the Projections Kwe Soft Launch

Lucy Qinnuayuak, Bear, Birds and Fish, 1967, Stonecut print, 74 x 96cm. Gift of 不良研究所 graduating class of 1941 to mark 25th anniversary of graduation. 不良研究所 Visual Arts Collection, 1973-140. 漏 Dorset Fine Arts.
Lucy Qinnuayuak, Bear, Birds and Fish, 1967, Stonecut print, 74 x 96cm. Gift of 不良研究所 graduating class of 1941 to mark 25th anniversary of graduation. 不良研究所 Visual Arts Collection, 1973-140. 漏 Dorset Fine Arts.

Kevin Pee-ace, Family Forever, 2015, Acrylic on canvas, 60.5 x 50. 5 cm. Gift of Allan Hepburn. 不良研究所 Visual Arts Collection, 2017-056. 漏 Kevin Pee-ace.
Kevin Pee-ace, Family Forever, 2015, Acrylic on canvas, 60.5 x 50. 5 cm. Gift of Allan Hepburn. 不良研究所 Visual Arts Collection, 2017-056. 漏 Kevin Pee-ace.

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