event

- Once a story is told, it cannot be called back. Once told, it is loose in the world.
Thomas King

Renee Linklater, member of Rainy River First Nations in Northwestern Ontario, wrote on King’s words that we must locate ourselves within what we do. That “wellness is directly related to how one is able to be in Creation.” That we locate ourselves in our stories to connect the disconnected. This is the essence of Sagatay (New Beginnings), a coming together to create wonderful moments powerful enough to transform even space and time. The magic flows in our gifts to work in peace with the energies of the world. The Anishinaabe meaning of ‘Sagatay’ roughly translates to “a new beginning”, which is what we strive for in this show that marks a new moment for us as artists who are still grappling with trauma and loss but looking forward to a new horizon with hope.

Indigenous nations from across the globe have been at the forefront for the protection of our environment, our giver of life. With the wonders of our environment and the ability we carry to reshape our future with our own hands fully on display, Sagatay (New Beginnings) calls us to action to protect and fight for the future of our planet’s well being: to come back to our base teachings of love and respect, paying respect to the land and the place we call home. Especially critical at this time due to the urgency in our climate crisis, these installations are altars of reverence for their respective elements of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water.

Jaene F. Castrillon (Mixed race Indigenous Colombian/Hong Kong Chinese), Danielle Hyde (Mixed Anishinaabe Ojibwe Garden River First Nation, Italian and Ukrainian mix) and Kate Meawasige (Anishnaabe artist from Genaabajing – Serpent River First Nations), each work on Turtle Island, the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. Working in the framework of disability, we ‘wonder-work’ to gather in ceremony in a good way here, activating the sacred space for feeling and healing. Through these living tableaus, we are invited into a different and sacred realm, transported to the delicate space of where 4 elements come together in a balanced harmony.