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File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: v90_pa_512 Jim Brewster family fonds Edmée Moore in wedding dress standing in the snow 1942
- Indigenous Engagement | Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies
Discover Indigenous Programming at the Whyte Museum, highlighting the art, history, and stories of Indigenous Peoples in the Canadian Rockies. Explore exhibitions, educational initiatives, and events that celebrate and preserve Indigenous culture, fostering understanding and engagement with local Indigenous communities. Welcome RESOURCES Land Acknowledgement Presentation The Buffalo: A Treaty Cultual Appropriation Walk and Tea / Stew and Bannock films Dinner Banff Library WORKSHOPS Stoney Nakoda Language / History Class Art Workshops PUBLIC ART Temporary Murals Picnic Tables RECOGNIZING RELATIONS INDIGENOUS ARCHIVES AND COLLECTIONS Upcoming Untitled Admission INDIGENOUS ENGAGEMENT Welcome Okâch Tin Um – Come on in, there is lots of room (Stoney Nakoda) Oki Kitsikiksimasim – Hello, glad to see you (Blackfoot) kuniya ha – Welcome, come in (Tsuu T’ina Dene) Ki’su’k kyukyit – Hello, Good Day (Ktunaxa) Weyt-kp xwexwéytep – Hello (to many) (Secwépemc) Tatawâw – Welcome (Cree) Tawshi – Hello (Métis) Translations generously provided by: Lloyd Wesley and Sykes Powderface (Stoney Nakoda) Maxine Weaselfat (Blackfoot) Former Chief Lee Crowchild (Tsuut’ina, Dene) Former Chief Sophie Pierre (Ktunaxa) Chief Rosanne Casimir of Ttes (Secwépemc)Jo-Ann Saddleback (Cree) Elder Edmee Comstock (Métis) WELCOME Okâch Tin Um – Come on in, there is lots of room (Stoney Nakoda) Oki Kitsikiksimasim – Hello, glad to see you (Blackfoot) kuniya ha – Welcome, come in (Tsuu T’ina Dene) Ki’su’k kyukyit – Hello, Good Day (Ktunaxa) Weyt-kp xwexwéytep – Hello (to many) (Secwépemc) Tatawâw – Welcome (Cree) Tawshi – Hello (Métis) Translations generously provided by: Lloyd Wesley and Sykes Powderface (Stoney Nakoda) Maxine Weaselfat (Blackfoot) Former Chief Lee Crowchild (Tsuut’ina, Dene) Former Chief Sophie Pierre (Ktunaxa) Chief Rosanne Casimir of Ttes (Secwépemc) Jo-Ann Saddleback (Cree) Elder Edmee Comstock (Métis) The Whyte Museum strives to re-build the cultural trade route and enrich engagement with Indigenous communities by enhancing the Indigenous perspectives within the museum’s programs and exhibitions and by responding to the key actions which museums, archives and educators have to implement through the TRC’s Calls to Action. The focus is to continue genuine relationship building between Indigenous groups that have historic ties to the museum and Banff through active listening, dialogue and inclusion. Goals: provide brave and safe spaces for relationship building that break down barriers to bring Indigenous and settler cultures together through a spirit of cooperation and commitment continue to work with new and existing partners to increase capacity and reflect the on-going creative dialogue shared by Indigenous and settler cultures serve as a leader, community resource, and forum that reflects the rich historical presence and ongoing contribution of Indigenous communities in the Bow Valley region encourage all participants to reflect on our collective history and explore how making and sharing creativity sparks powerful conversations and builds relationships Indigenous Advisors Indigenous Advisors draw on the experiences, expertise, and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples who traditionally frequented the Banff and Bow Valley areas. They advise Whyte Museum staff on effective and respectful engagement with Indigenous communities on matters relating to the museum's programs, operations, and repatriation. Indigenous Advisors ensure various Indigenous perspectives in ownership of museum content are represented and respected. The museum consults with Indigenous Advisors from across Turtle Island and with those that have historic ties to the museum and the Bow Valley. The museum is the caretaker of numerous living objects, photographs, moving image (film and video), sound recordings, books, maps, non-published textual documents (eg. letters, notes and reports), which relate to Indigenous cultural heritage in its collections. EVENTS AND PROGRAMS Cave and Basin Mural Project Call for Artists 2024/2025 Parks Canada Agency and Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies seek up to four Indigenous Artists to create temporary mural paintings, to be displayed prominently on the grounds at Cave and Basin National Historic Site. This call is open to all Indigenous Artists 18+ years of age from Indigenous partner communities with strong connections to the site who are looking to increase their knowledge of mural painting and large-scale public art-making. Priority in 2024 will be given to artists from Îyârhe Nakoda (Goodstoney, Bearspaw) and Blackfoot (Siksika, Piikani) nations who have yet to share their stories of this place. INFORMATION SESSION: THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2023 at 6:00pm MST (via ZOOM) DEADLINE TO APPLY: Monday, February 5, 2024 at 11:59pm MST TO APPLY: Applications should be submitted electronically in *.PDF format (E-mail subject line should read: Indigenous Artist MENTEE Application.) CONTACT: For more information about the project, or to arrange a meeting via phone, video conference or in person, please contact Project Coordinator Dawn Saunders Dahl at: dsaundersdahl@whyte.org More Information INFO SESSION RESOURCES RESOURCES WHYTE MUSEUM OF THE CANADIAN ROCKIES LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that we live, work and play on the traditional Treaty 7 territories of the Iyarhe Nakoda Nations (Bearspaw, Wesley, and Chiniki), the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, and Piikani) and the Tsuut’ina, also traditionally, spritually and culturally shared with Ktunaxa, Secwépemc, Mountain Cree and Métis. We are dedicated to working in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of (re)concilliation and change. Banff, and all of Turtle Island, is located on the traditional lands of Indigenous Peoples as referred to in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies actively addresses the Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) 94 Calls to Action, specifically. This relationship to the land is further declared by the National Indian Brotherhood (now Assembly of First Nations), in a Declaration of the First Nations (1981) on collective rights. Historically, there is a long-standing connection to the Bow Valley around Banff National Park for many Indigenous nations now known as Treaty 7 First Nations territory which is a treaty signed on behalf of Queen Victoria in 1877. Land Acknowledgement Presentation Developed by Troy Patenaude – Fort Calgary, Ken Faverholdt and Dawn Saunders Dahl, with guidance from Sykes Powderface. The Land We Are On: A Presentation about Land Acknowledgement Statements and What They Mean Speakers: Kenneth Favrholdt, Heritage Consultant; Troy Patenaude, PhD Director of Cultural Development, Fort Calgary; Dawn Saunders Dahl, BFA, Indigenous Program Manager, Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies Sykes Powderface, Stoney/Iyarhe Nakoda; Elder and Indigenous cultural consultant In recent years, various land acknowledgement statements have been adopted as way to provide historical education about Turtle Island. These statements advance reconciliation initiatives outlined in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action (2015) and are acts of decolonization. We all stand on Indigenous land but not everyone has a relationship with Indigenous peoples or understands the purpose of why these acknowledgments are an important action. This session provides three different viewpoints from those who have developed acknowledgement statements and work with Indigenous communities across Western Canada. More information about the speakers can be found here . This presentation was filmed in August 2020.Partner: Fort Calgary. Land Acknowledgement Presentation The Buffalo: A Treaty of Cooperation, Renewal and Restoration July 2021 Indigenous community members started discussion and re-ignited friendships to talk about the land and the biggest modern Treaty across First Nations in Canada and Tribes in the USA, the Buffalo Treaty. This treaty recognizes the cultural, material and spiritual on-going relationship with the land. The Buffalo, lead us in nurturing our land, lands and other animals to once again realize the Buffalo Ways for future generations. The Buffalo: A Treaty Cultural Appropriation: Basics for Diverse Futures Speakers: Troy Patenaude, Director of Cultural Development at Fort Calgary; Dawn Saunders Dahl, Manager of Indigenous Relations and Programs at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies; Christine Frederick, Executive Director of the DreamSpeakers Festival Society; Melrene Salroy-Eaglespeaker, owner and operator of Native Diva Creations. This 40-minute webinar discusses complex dynamics surrounding cultural appropriation. This presentation was created and presented from an Indigenous perspective. It includes definitions, history in Canada, examples of what not to do and recommendations in the Visual Arts, Fashion, Jewelry, Performing Arts, Ancestral Living Skills, Tourism, and Communications. Additional Resources Partner: Fort Calgary Cultual Appropriation Indigenous Food Films Medicine Walk Labradour with Rose Hip Berries Tea This is the main source of tea for the Stoney Nakoda. This found on the leaves from plants that grow year round in mossy/swampy areas, of the Rocky Mountains. It is called CINDA WARHPA in the Stoney Nakoda language. The Rose Hips are gathered in late summer when they are ripened and dried for about 2 weeks. Rose hips are called OZINGTA THOTHO in the Stoney Nakoda language, translated means thistle berries. Mint Tea Mint grows in the lake areas around Morley and is harvested in the late summer. Once gathered, the mint takes about a week to dry and is used with other roots can aid when feeling under the weather. Mint is called CHI YA HA HUN in the Stoney Nakoda language, which means the purple tips of plant leaves. Bannock and Stew During the pandemic, the Bow Valley Food Alliance reached out to inquire if we could provide Indigenous recipe making. Phillomene and Tracey Stevens made a hearty stew and bannock meal to share with Chiniki College and encourage healthier eating. Please enjoy and make your own version at home! In partnership with the Bow Valley Food Alliance September/ October 2020 Filmed by Nakoda AV Club Walk and Tea / Stew and Bannock films International Mountain Day Dinner and Conversation On January 29, 2020 the Town of Banff and the Whyte Museum hosted an evening of Indigenous food, cultural learning and discussion with Stoney Nakoda, Tsuu T’ina, Ktunaxa youth, community members and Elders to learn about the history of Indigenous Culture in Banff. This event was held in response to the Banff Canmore Community Foundation Vital Signs 2018 Report findings. Feedback on the assessment from Indigenous community members indicated how important it is to include Indigenous voices in any community decision making. “For over 10,000 years Indigenous peoples have lived and travelled through this valley, including the Stoney Nakoda, Ktunaxa, TsuuT’ina, Kainai, Piikani and Siksika... In the face of climate change, habitat loss, economic uncertainty and social challenges, how do we keep this Bow Valley – our home and our community – a special place that is vibrant and resilient, not only for us, but for future generations?” The event provided discussion around how to include Indigenous wise practices within various decision making levels in Banff. Lead by Daryl Kootenay and Ariel Waskewitch, the discussion focused on how to apply Indigenous culture and knowledge for the future. Topics included: The history of Indigenous peoples in Banff and the importance of their sense of place. The relationship of Indigenous peoples with the ecosystem of the mountain park – learning about the interrelationship between people, animals, plants, mother earth, spiritual ceremonies, and the beliefs of ecological balance. The history of Indigenous relationship to food such as hunting and gathering in the mountains. PARTNERS: Town of Banff, Bow Valley Food Alliance, Banff Library Seasonal Walk and Tea We welcome you to experience Banff and the Whyte Museum from an Indigenous perspective with Stoney Nakoda and Ktunaxa perspectives. The half hour walk will take place along the Bow River and include storytelling about the plants and animals that were traditionally gathered and hunted in the Bow Valley. Starting and ending in the backyard of the Whyte Museum with an Indigenous tea and conversation. Partner: Bow Valley Food Alliance Wanigas Woyuha Aki Da Hna Tibi: Whyte and Moore Historic Family Home Tour Experience the Whyte Museum historic homes with Stoney Nakoda community members, Phillomene and Tracey Stevens who will guide participants through the Moore and Whyte homes. They will share stories about the Indigenous objects in the homes and the special relationships the Stoney Nakoda had with Peter and Catharine Whyte as well as Phillip and Pearl Moore. Îethka Wohnagabi Seasonal Education: How It Was Told To Us Experience Banff and the Whyte Museum from an Indigenous perspective – this program will focus discussion about the land and the seasons from within the Stoney Nakoda tipi located outside of the historic homes. They will share their ancestral knowledge and experiences around Stoney Nakoda culture/tradition throughout the 4 seasons as well as Stoney Nakoda language and their memories of growing up in Morley will be shared in this immersive 90 minute program. This program will be delivered outside on the museum grounds and talks about nature using examples through storytelling about the seasons, games, plant identification, Indigenous objects, animal footprints, fur and feathers. Partner: Calgary Foundation Biographies Phillomene Stevens Îethka Traditional Name: Makochi Wiya – Mother Earth Woman Phillomene is the matriarch of her family, an Elder and Knowledge Keeper who likes to spend time with her family. She enjoys cooking traditional meals and sharing her teachings about different plants and their uses when walking in the forest with youth. She attended Mount Royal College (violence prevention course) and trained at Portage College as a Crisis Councilor. She also worked at the Eagles Nest Womens’ shelter for 23 years in Mini Thni. Tracey Stevens Îethka Traditional Name: Sukthi Rhne Rhne - Spotted Buckskin Horse Tracey is a Knowledge Keeper, the youngest in a family of 13. She likes to cook, sew, knit and make crafts and purses, as well as take care of her horses. Tracey attended Portage College and also trained to be a Crisis Councilor. She worked at the Eagles Nest Womens’ shelter for 20 years in Mini Thni. Tracey and Phillomene are sisters and they both support the local schools through storytelling and craft making. They are descendants of Chief Ta-Otha: Peter Wesley (from their Mothers’ side on the Wesley clan) as well as Red Cloud, Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull. And on their Father’s side they are known as the People of the Lake. They both live in the area of where their ancestors were from Horse Lake (Chiniki Lake) and the Kananaskis area. Dinner Banff Library WORKSHOPS WORKSHOPS Stoney Nakoda Language / History Class Buddy Language and History Class Museum staff were incredibly saddened to hear of Lloyd (Buddy) Wesley’s passing on June 25, 2021. Buddy’s commitment to reconciliation led him to continue to teach locals in Banff and the Bow Valley about Stoney Nakoda history, the importance of Banff and the mountains to the Stoney Nakoda, as well as basic Stoney Nakoda language, such as saying "Hello, my name is…" as well as the names of animals, plants and the seasons, to start new friendships. Buddy was teaching Nakoda history and language class through the objects and photos from the Whyte Museum collections at the time of his passing. These lessons provided a deeper understanding of Indigenous culture in the Bow Valley for the participants. Buddy expressed a deep interest to mentor younger Stoney Nakoda speakers for future generations to teach Nakoda language and history. We hope to continue his legacy and honor his memory. Stoney Nakoda Language / History Class Art Workshops Art Workshops In Banff and Morley March and April 2020 ECO DYING / BASKET WEAVING Lillian Rose, artist from Ktunaxa in Windermere, British Columbia provided cedar basket making and eco dyeing workshops, in Banff and at Chiniki College. Basket makers were introduced to Lillian and had the opportunity to talk to her about the importance of the seasons, harvesting and developing relationships. Lillian provided an eco-dying workshop where students were shown different materials and methods that could be used to create a base for drawings, fabric, books, and postcards. She discussed different times of year to harvest materials, and how the materials can create different results for the eco-dying process. PARTNERS: Calgary Foundation, Chiniki College MOCCASSIN MAKING: Ojibway Artist Sarah Howes In March 2020 the Whyte Museum hosted an artist talk with Benjamin Gessner from the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS) and Ojibway artist Sarah Agaton Howes. Benjamin Gessner presented information about the Minnesota Historical Society, his role and the Native American Artist in residence program. Learn more about the program here . Sarah shared her experiences as the 2018-19 Native American Artist in Residence at the Minnesota Historical Society Museum. She provided information about creating the book Grandmothers Gift Nookomis Obagijigan and presented examples of her art and projects. Sarah is an experienced teacher with a foundation in anti-racism and community-based social change work, a published poet and spoken word performer. Sarah frequently shares her knowledge and experience with bead work, making moccasins and creating regalia in her community and expressed how important it is for her to share her knowledge with local Indigenous communities. Sarah brought her apprentice Chally Topping, and they taught workshops at the Whyte Museum and Chiniki College. Participants learned about different moccasin styles and students were inspired to create their own books, designs and gained confidence. They were invited by the students to attend the Round Dance in Morley to meet the community where they shared wild rice picked in Minnesota. Participant reflections about what they learned: PARTNERS: Calgary Foundation, Chiniki College PUBLIC ART PUBLIC ART TEMPORARY MURAL BOX PROGRAM TITLE: dagunenâ ktûtha giya In February 2020, a mural for the Town of Canmore Art and Events Art Walk in the Woods project was designed, constructed and painted by Stoney Nakoda students from Chiniki College with guest artist AJA Louden. Chiniki knowledge keeper and the late Lloyd (Buddy) Wesley, who helped guide the concept and provided Stoney Nakoda translations. The title of the piece is: dagunenâ ktûtha giya which means “everything happens on the fourth time around!” The Stoney Nakoda language for each season is at the top of each side of the cube and the faces of the cube face in the four cardinal directions. Each face of the cube shows a hand, based on the hands of students at the college, performing an activity related to the season. Artists and assistants: Kyle Kaquitts, Vera Kaquitts, Katie Rider, Zeke Omesasoo, Amanda Twoyoungman, Jarron Poucette, Blair Simeon, Alison Smalleyes, Tiana Labelle, Martin Kaquitts, Tyren Twoyoungman, Renneta Simeon, Lewis Kootenay, Sally Twoyoungman, Denise Kaquitts, Kristan Rider, Zerlina Omesasoo, Clark Labelle PARTNERS: Calgary Foundation, Chiniki College, Town of Canmore Arts and Events. Special thanks to Lorna Rye, instructor at Chiniki College and Nicky Pacas from Arts and Events at the Town of Canmore. TITLE: Sitting Wind and the Trade Routes Led by Edmonton based mural artist AJA Louden with Sitting Winds grandsons: Stoney Nakoda Artists Kyle Kaquitts, Jarron Poucette and Chris Morin from Maskwacis. The artists researched and found inspiration in the Whyte Museum collection, historic homes and archives. The late Stoney Nakoda historian and knowledge keeper Lloyd (Buddy) Wesley provided background information about the living objects and the trade route theme. The artists chose to paint their grandfathers’ image to honor him and as a gift for their family and community. Their grandfather was essentially also part of the trade route with Peter and Catharine Robb Whyte through the exchanging of ideas, friendship, art and community connections. The photo of Frank Kaquitts that the artists referred to for inspiration was taken by their cousin, the late Thomas Kaquitts. Tomas took the photo when he was in Grade 7, which was part of the Through the Lens photography program. “Through the Lens was a four-month extracurricular photography program for students from Banff Community High School, Canmore Collegiate High School and Morley Community School. For 20 years, the program immersed students in the creative process of traditional and digital photography, encouraging participants to experiment and learn about themselves, their community and the exciting medium of visual communication.” https://www.gallerieswest.ca/events/through-the-lens-20th-anniversary/ Information about each side of the Mural: Side one: Frank Kaquitts portrait: Sitting Wind, born Frank Morin on February 28,1925, was given the name Sitting Wind from a Medicine Man when he was a baby. When Sitting Wind’s mother died when he was four, his grandmother and step-grandfather adopted him (and renamed him Frank Kaquitts). He moved from the central Alberta community of Hobbema (now known as Maskwacis) to Morley, a reserve northwest of Calgary, where he later went to residential school. Born a Cree, he was raised a Stoney. Sitting Wind was a soldier, a boxer, a landscape artist who attended the Banff School of Fine Arts, and an actor, known for his role in the 1976 film Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson starring Paul Newman. He was also a politician, first elected to serve on the Bearspaw Band Council in 1957, then elected Chief in 1961. When the Stoney Nakoda people voted in favour of merging the Bearspaw, Chiniki, and Wesley First Nations in 1974, Sitting Wind was the first-ever grand Chief of the briefly united Stoney Tribe. Following the return to the three-band system, Sitting Wind served as Chief of the Chiniki Band. Sitting Wind died in 2002, at age 77 . https://calgarylibrary.ca/library-news/a-photographs-journey-home/ Side two: Names of the 4 cardinal directions in Stoney Nakoda with an image of one important item that was traded in that direction Side three: Necklace from the Whyte Museum collection: it was used to show which horse was the fastest, we feel our art is important, our fast horse. Side four: Collage of different items were traded in this area: Connections between the cultures through the trade routes, on a stretched hide you see: Bow making techniques, bows and arrowheads, tools, knife, wood boats, spear, tomahawk, headdress, Food and important animals: Fish, Bison, Rabbit, Elk, Buffalo, Moose, beaver, fox, eagle, Sweetgrass braids, choke cherries Stoney design / pattern on both sides Medicine wheel: is in black and white, represents both Stoney Nakoda and Cree cultures. Imagery from the trade route is connected to the medicine wheel. PARTNERS: Calgary Foundation, Chiniki College We have developed a multi-year partnership with the Cave and Basin to create more boxes that offer opportunities from all 7 Indigenous groups to tell their stories. Starting in summer of 2022. TITLE: Ma Kochi Wastay Inspiration for this mural is based on conversations the artists Gordon Wesley, Jarron Poucette and AJA Louden had with Museum staff exploring the collections at the Museum, talking about the land, and finding new friendships. The mural expresses a connection to the land, the river, the falls and the animals, and for visitors to learn Stoney language. The project started with the artists looking at paintings in the Museum vault by artists Carl Rungius (a favourite of Gordon Wesley) and Sitting Wind (Jarrons’ grandfather). The artists also explored the Museum Archives, where they found maps, photos of fossils, events and relatives, providing inspiration for the mural and future projects. Exploring their ideas about the trade routes and the importance of Banff with Elder Phillomene Stevens, she described this place as being a nice spot in every season. The artists wanted to include Stoney language and find a connection to the late Lloyd (Buddy) Wesley. The artists also spoke with the Museum CEO, Donna Livingstone about projects like this, that connect the museum to this special place. The artists considered the site lines of of the two mural boxes, and brought in new colours and energy to the space so that the pair of mural boxes can work in concert. Artists: Jarron Poucette and Gordon Wesley, led by AJA Louden PARTNER: Calgary Foundation Black Diamond Mural After meeting through the picnic table project in the summer of 2021, Bearspaw and Canadien collaborated on the Source of Life mural in Black Diamond, Alberta, under the mentorship of Whyte Museum Manager of Indigenous Programs and Relations, Dawn Saunders Dahl. Canadien extended an invitation to continue to mentor and pass on information about mural logistics, idea development and creation to Bearspaw. Canadien extended an invitation to continue to mentor and pass on information about mural logistics, idea development and creation to Bearspaw. Canadien also worked with local youth and organizations in Black Diamond. He writes: “…Source of Life celebrates the interconnectedness of the pre-settlement foothills landscape when buffalo fulfilled their role as a keystone species and supported a vast web of life on the North American plains including thriving Indigenous societies. Local youth contributed their handprints in orange paint, in solidarity with the survivors and victims of Canada’s Residential School system and to signify a future filled with positive relationships.” Canadien created the mural as part of the STEPS 2021 – 2022 CreateSpace BIPOC Public Art Residency. Partner: Calgary Foundation Temporary Murals PICNIC TABLES During the summer of 2021 Indigenous artists Bruno Canadien (Dene), Jarron Poucette (Stoney Nakoda) and Cheyanne Bearspaw (Stoney Nakoda), painted seven picnic tables brought to the Whyte Museum grounds. Canadien’s designs focused on floral motifs – a predominant feature in traditional and contemporary Dene and Metis art, which he says symbolizes his love for family and a close connection to the land. Bruno Canadien: These tables are painted with my own floral designs, adapted from drawings I originally made for my wife Amy on our 27th anniversary. Floral motifs figure predominately in traditional and contemporary Dene & Metis art, and symbolize our love for family and a close connection to the land. “While the Dene don't claim a connection to the Bow Valley, my family has enjoyed this area for many years,” says Canadien. “I'm happy to be able to share my work with the community in this small way.” Jarron Poucette of the Stoney Nakoda drew inspiration for his artwork from the traditional fancy dance or war dance. “I painted the fancy dancer because I like the different colours it has, you need speed and agility in order to dance fancy,” he says. “Back then, our people called it the war dance. In battle they carry a stick ‘coup’ and the warrior would have a lot of speed and agility to run up to their enemies and touch them with the coup without getting killed. It’s quite fascinating.” Cheyenne Bearspaw, member of the Stoney Nakoda Nation and Indigenous Research Assistant at the Whyte Museum, drew from their favourite colours for when they wanted to dance traditional, as powwow regalia reflects the individuality of the dancer. Partners: Calgary Foundation, Banff Lake Louise Tourism Picnic Tables RECOGNIZING RELATIONS RECOGNIZING RELATIONS Recognizing Relations is a community-naming project initiated in 2014 by the Archives & Special Collections department at the Whyte Museum. It was started in order to update the captions and descriptions of our large collection of photographs representing local Indigenous peoples, many taken at the annual event “Banff Indian Days”. A large portion of these photographs did not identify people by name or even what nation they came from. Project Lead Dagny Dubois along with community Knowledge Keepers Corleigh and Fred Powderface reached out to Elders from the Stoney Nakoda community to learn the names and family connections of those people portrayed in these historical photographs. We honour and thank the Elders who were willing to meet with us and share their knowledge and memories. The information gathered through the interview and research process over the last nine years has been used to update the original captions and titles of over 500 photographs. You can search that database here ! [unidentified woman and children}, ca. 1906, Elliot Barnes fonds. v48_na_485 Click Here to view Recognizing Relations images and to visit our online database The Recognizing Relations project is also working to make our collections of archival photographs, sound recordings, films and written records more accessible to Indigenous communities. Community Facilitator Colleen Crawler is actively reaching out to Elders, schools, and other community centres to share what we have and offer our resources. Our Indigenous Research Intern Jacinda Brisson has accompanied Colleen, as well as organized our photographic materials. We are part of the broader museum mandate to reach further out to other Indigenous communities who travelled through this territory. We welcome all visitors to our space to look at materials in person. We are also open to hearing feedback and name identifications on any of the photographs we have on our database. Recognizing Relations_Whyte Museum Recognizing Relations_Whyte Museum Recognizing Relations_Whyte Museum 1/2 Recognizing Relations is supported by INDIGENOUS ARCHIVES AND COLLECTIONS INDIGENOUS ARCHIVES AND COLLECTIONS Explore the Indigenous Archives and Collections Here Upcoming UPCOMING Bow Valley History and Living with Wildlife. Partners: WildSmart, Bow Valley Immigration partnership, Town of Banff, Town of Canmore Indigenous Exhibit change / Oral recordings. Partners: Canadian Heritage and Calgary Foundation Indigenous Seasonal Walks and Teas, Seasonal Education. Partners: Bow Valley Food Alliance Historic Home Tours from an Indigenous Perspective. Partners: Calgary Foundation Private Indigenous Program Tours are Coming Soon
- m307_41_067
File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: m307_41_067 Moore family fonds 1942 Spitfire Fund $7,000 on Way to Objective Draw for Pictures To Be Made Soon, Committee Reports The Banff-Jasper Spitfire Fund which has already made a contribution of $7,000 to Wings for Britain, will hold the draw for paintings by noted Canadian artists shortly, according to an announcement made this week by the committee in Banff. Objective of the Spitfire Fund committee is at least $23,000. A substantial portion of the money already sent in has been raised by the sale of tickets on six valuable paintings donated by the following well-known artists: Roland Gissing, Peter Whyte, Belmore Brown, Roland Jackson, Carl Rungius Nicolas de Grandmaison. EXHIBITED IN CALGARY The paintings, which have already been exhibited in Banff and Calgary, where tickets have been sold since last summer, will be on display in Winnipeg for a fortnight starting April 27 and will then probably go to Edmonton and sometime in the late spring or early summer the draw will be made. The Banff committee, which is composed of Mrs. Harold Macdonald, Mrs. C. M. Walker, Miss Agnes Hammond and Mrs. P. A. Moore, to whom contributions may be sent, has raised money in various other ways also and will continue to do so until the objective is reached. Flower sales, a raffle for a sports coat and one for a bob sled as well as the "Mile of Pennies" held last year have all raised large sums for the fund.
- v439_pa_279
File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: v439_pa_279 Moore family fonds Studio portrait of women's hockey team. Pearl Brewster Moore in centre. [ca. 191?]
- v692_pa_133a_088
File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: v692_pa_133a_088 Peter and Catharine Whyte Foundation fonds Moving of Pearl Moore house from Banff Avenue to site next to Archives 1971 Ron Duke, Photographer
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File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: v439_pa_435 Moore family fonds Pearl, Philip, and Edmée Moore [ca. 193?]
- Climbing Pioneers of Yamnuska
Climbing Pioneers of Yamnuska Climbing Pioneers of Yamnuska is about Iyamnathka, the “flat-faced mountain” on the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains, overlooking the prairies, which has been sacred to the Stoney People for millennia. More recently, the mountain, now known as Yamnuska, has become special to thousands of rock climbers. Since the early fifties many climbing routes have been established up the south face. Using interviews videotaped by Chic Scott in the 1990s, this film directed & co-produced by Glen Crawford, tells the story of those climbing pioneers and their adventures — Leo Grillmair, Hans Gmoser, Franz Dopf, Brian Greenwood, Don Vockeroth, Dick Lofthouse and Urs Kallen. This film was generously sponsored by Dr. Bill Hanlon and Lake Louise Ski Resort.
- 404 | whytemuseum
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- Commemorative Portfolio | whytemuseum
Explore the Whyte Museum's Commemorative Portfolio, showcasing unique artistic and historical works that honor the legacy of Peter and Catharine Whyte. Learn how to purchase limited-edition prints and support the museum’s mission while acquiring meaningful pieces that celebrate the rich cultural heritage of the Canadian Rockies. Catharine Robb Whyte, Peter Whyte: Commemorative Portfolio Edited and annotated by Jon Whyte and published by the Whyte Foundation of Banff, Canada in 1980, the portfolio celebrates and chronicles the life of Catharine Robb Whyte (1906 – 1979) and Peter Whyte (1905 – 1966). Both long-time residents of Banff, Catharine and Peter were best known as portrait and landscape artists, local community supporters and philanthropists, and founders of the Whyte Foundation and Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff, Alberta. Researchers: Key word search is available within the Commemorative Portfolio PDFs at the end of this page. Jon Whyte's Letter to Subscribers Jon Whyte's Introduction Booklet Pete'n'Catharine their story Commemorative Portfolio - Colourplates Carmen Pearson - Foreword Downloadable/Searchable PDFs Jon Whyte's Letter to Subscribers Jon Whyte's Introduction Booklet Pete'n'Catharine their story - Pages 1 to 73 Pete'n'Catharine their story - Pages 74 to 144 Commemorative Portfolio - Colourplates Carmen Pearson - Foreword Please contact the Archives & Library at archives@whyte.org for more information about the Catharine Robb Whyte, Peter Whyte: Commemorative Portfolio. PC Portfolio PDFs
- v439_pa_440
File name: fonds: Title: Date: D escription: v439_pa_440 Moore family fonds Pearl and Edmée Moore with pets. [ca. 196?]
- Book Excerpt: To See What He Saw by Patricia Cucman and Stanley Munn
Book Excerpt: To See What He Saw by Patricia Cucman and Stanley Munn Back to the Cairn Produced in conjunction with our Summer 2024 exhibition The O'Hara Era , the book To See What He Saw by Stanley Munn and Patricia Cucman focuses on the Lake O’Hara work produced by English-Canadian artist and Group of Seven member James Edward Hervey (J.E.H.) MacDonald, R.C A. (1873–1932) between 1924 and 1932. The book documents MacDonald’s seven trips to Yoho National Park in the Rocky Mountains of eastern British Columbia, Canada, and presents a detailed catalogue of the resulting en plein air sketches and the subsequent studio works completed during the last nine years of his life. The book features more than 200 of MacDonald’s western works from this period, organized geographically with en plein air sketches and studio work illustrated side by side. Each sketch is accompanied by at least one present-day photograph, many of which are taken from the exact rocky perch where MacDonald sat. This pairing enables the viewer to see what MacDonald saw and to understand how he processed the landscape before him. Enjoy this excerpt from To See What He Saw: J.E.H. MacDonald and the O'Hara Years 1924-1932 available for purchase from the Whyte Museum Book Shop. Reproduced with permission of Patricia Cucman. Introduction In July 2000, in Le Relais Day Shelter at Lake O'Hara, British Columbia, a small group of campers and lodge guests attended a presentation about the O'Hara work of James Edward Hervey (J.E.H.) MacDonald; this book's authors were among them. The presenter, Lisa Christensen, showed images of MacDonald's O'Hara sketches done in the mid to late 1920s. Lisa also had a copy of a photograph of MacDonald, Peter and Catharine Whyte, and Adeline Link sitting in an informal camp in Opabin — the "Shalesplitters." Another copy of the photograph was hanging in the upstairs balcony of Lake O'Hara Lodge. We had seen it often but had not understood its significance. In 2003, Lisa was back in Le Relais and presented from her now-published book The Lake O'Hara Art of J.E.H. MacDonald and Hiker's Guide. We had our copy with us. During the evening someone said, "It would be impossible to find exact locations for these sketches." We determined to learn more about MacDonald's trips to O'Hara, his sketches, and the resultant studio works, and the hunt was on to find the Opabin Shalesplitters location. It wasn't until 2006—three O'Hara visits later—that we stood, at last, at the Shalesplitters site where the billy cans were still stashed in their hiding spot. As we sat there, we realized that we were sitting at an exact painting site. Seeing how the vegetation had evolved since the 1920s facilitated the finding of other painting sites. That week, we sat upon several rocks where MacDonald had been seated while he painted; near one of these was a remnant of paint, the first of several that we would find. That winter, we researched MacDonald's O'Hara works and collected images. Searching for and photographing the painting sites added a purpose and dimension to our hiking that had not been anticipated. With every new visit, more painting sites and artifacts were found. It became possible to understand how MacDonald had seen O'Hara and how he had translated it to his sketches. Since that first discovery, we have collected more than two hundred images of MacDonald's western sketches, drawings, and studio works, and have documented the locations of all but two. Photographs of what lay in front of MacDonald's paint box from the exact, or as near as possible, location were captured for all but a handful of the works. Along the way, Rod Green, initially at Masters Gallery and later at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, provided much support. From our first encounter at Masters—"Are you the people who found the pots?"—Rod was excited about our "hobby" and encouraged us in many ways in the early days. On our first meeting, Rod casually handed us a sketch to hold in our hands. He later shared images of works that came through Masters' doors, introduced us to key contacts, and assisted in other ways too numerous to itemize throughout the last four years. Without Rod, it is doubtful that this hobby would have blossomed into this book. He kept poking at us to do something with it. One of the contacts attributable to Rod is Susan MacDonald, great-niece of the painter. Susan generously shared relevant materials from the Estate of Thoreau MacDonald, giving us permission to include photographs, the transcript of the 1929 diary, and excerpts from several letters. Susan cheerfully fielded all our questions: "Susan, how big is the paper that this letter is written on?" With this support, the project expanded to include all aspects of McDonald's trips to O'Hara. Letters and diaries were transcribed and historic photographs collected with a view to fully understanding his time at O'Hara. The project became so large it was difficult to know how to share it; subsequently, it was set aside in favour of other pursuits. In 2020, Rod asked us to share our work with Anne Ewen, Chief Curator, Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. When Anne saw the scope of the project, the concept emerged to use the work as the basis for an exhibit at the Whyte Museum to commemorate the 100th anniversary of MacDonald's first visit to O'Hara. Anne was committed from the start and remained so throughout the four years that it took to wrap it up. She seemed to never doubt that it could be done—even when the authors were not so sure. Amie Lalonde, Registrar and Assistant Curator, Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, applied her invaluable attention to detail and assisted us in tracking down painting images and permissions so the entire body of MacDonald's O'Hara work could be included in the book. There is much written about the Group of Seven and the individual members of the Group by art historians and scholars. We are neither art historians nor art scholars and do not attempt to embellish those scholarly writings. These pages do not include significant information about MacDonald's work outside O'Hara. Rather, within these pages the reader will find discussions of MacDonald's seven western trips and a detailed catalogue of the resulting en plein air sketches and subsequent studio works completed in the last nine years of his life. (...) The work as originally conceived by the authors is finished herein. It is our hope that this volume will be of use to art collectors, enthusiasts, historians, students, teachers, galleries, museums, and auction houses. This information can be a starting point for researchers to further explore other aspects of this portion of MacDonald's legacy. Because the O'Hara landscape is presented through MacDonald's brush as it was a hundred years ago and as it is "today" through the recent photographs of the same landscape, the comparison presents a body of data for those whose interests lie in the study of alpine flora, climate, and environment. Chapter One A Hinterland Far Beyond Algoma MacDonald's seven cross-country trips to O'Hara on the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) carried him from Toronto, through Ontario, and over the prairies into southern Alberta. The tracks ran through downtown Calgary and across the foothills to Banff, and thence, 5 kilometres west of the Continental Divide to Hector Siding where he alighted on the shore of Wapta Lake. The last leg of his journey was on horseback, 13 kilometres up Cataract Valley to reach CPR's Lake O'Hara Bungalow Camp. Today, Lake O'Hara is described as a backcountry experience, but the Lake O'Hara Bungalow Camp, and its fabled surroundings, that MacDonald experienced were much more rustic than would be appreciated by many today. It is necessary to describe O'Hara and its surroundings of the time, in order to understand the personal artistic focus that O'Hara would become for the last nine years of MacDonald's life, 1924 through 1932. MacDonald's travel across the country brought him to a land that was raw, vibrant, and exciting—a deep hinterland of which he knew nothing until Lawren Harris urged him to experience it himself. At O'Hara, MacDonald found a new theatre in which to explore the expression of Canadian nature — a place where he could apply the aesthetic that Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven had conceived at Algoma and elsewhere. O'Hara, not yet part of Canada's Yoho National Park, was a spectacular jewel at the heart of a region that was being prised open by surveyors, railmen, mountaineers, miners, and artists. Before the migration of Europeans to southern Alberta, the land had been inhabited by ancestors of the Blackfoot Nations for centuries and the area was accessible via several well-established migration routes. Post-Confederation, and prior to 1883 when the CPR reached Calgary, the most expedient route into southern Alberta for both goods and travellers was up the Mississippi River to the Missouri River as far as Fort Benton, Montana (near Great Falls)—the northern limit for paddle steamers. From Fort Benton, ox-cart trains (bull trains) made the trip overland across the Canadian border, to Lethbridge, to Fort Macleod, and finally along the old Macleod Trail to Calgary. This was summer travel only. The arrival of the railroad ended the bull trains; but still, in 1924, the far reaches of the Rocky Mountains were not easily accessible beyond the limits of those steel rails. In the fall of 1883, the CPR extended the rail line through to Laggan, known today as Lake Louise. Lake Louise itself was not known to settlers until a Stoney Nakoda guide brought packer Tom Wilson to see Horâ Juthin Imne, "Lake of Little Fishes." Wilson recognized the extraordinary potential of the spot. Tourism became part of the CPR's business plan, and the company built the first modest log cabin on the shores of Lake Louise in 1890. While this cabin burned down in 1893, it marked the beginning of the exploitation of the spectacular beauties that awaited travellers in the mountain parks. But before tourists, there must come the means by which to bring them. Twelve thousand railway workers were recruited to press onward with the construction of the railway into British Columbia. In 1884, the railbed was laid through the Kicking Horse valley west of the Great Divide in what is now Yoho National Park. This was audacious due to the rugged nature of the Pass and the Gorge. The Ktunaxa (Kootenay) and Secwépemc (Shuswap) peoples used the longer but easier route up the Ottertail and through McArthur Pass as a seasonal migration corridor between Columbia Valley and Bow Valley and the open prairies beyond. In 1885, the eastern and western portions of the CPR met in British Columbia at Craigellachie. Construction in the Kicking Horse Valley was slowed by the difficulty of construction; men were living along the line in 1884, and trails such as those to Sherbrooke and Ross lakes are surely lasting marks of their presence. The "Big Hill" over the Kicking Horse Pass west of Wapta Lake was intended to be temporary. The 4.5 % grade was terribly steep for trains; three men were killed when the first train to attempt the run suffered a brake failure and derailed. Other serious accidents punctuated the twenty-five years that the Big Hill was in use before the 1900 completion of the Spiral Tunnels. In 1886, CPR promoted the creation of "Mount Stephen Dominion Reserve," a 6-kilometre reserve around Field, BC, which included the traditional lands of the Ktunaxa Nation. After several incremental extensions, in 1930 the reserve was renamed Yoho National Park, the same year that Rocky Mountain Park was renamed Banff National Park. MacDonald's seven trips west to paint at O'Hara occurred before the modern limits of Canada's mountain parks were set. GROWING AWARENESS OF LAKE O'HARA Outdoor people—mostly mountaineering people—had been accessing O'Hara for perhaps 30 years before MacDonald's first visit in 1924. J.J. McArthur, of Dominion Land Survey, visited Lake O'Hara in 1890 and brought back word of O'Hara's rugged beauty, and the mountaineering community took notice. Soon after, the CPR introduced Swiss guides to attract and aid climbing activity. Initially, guides were available just during the summer months, but by 1912, the CPR had built a permanent house at Golden, BC, for the Swiss guides (Figure 1.4). O'Hara was a spectacular place for climbing, and it would have attracted more than just climbers were it not so raw and remote. In 1912, the first permanent cabin at O'Hara was built by the Government of Canada in the Alpine Meadow; the structure, named Wiwaxy Cabin, was intended as a way station for climbers on their way to or from the Lake Louise area via the passes (Figure 1.5). About this same time, the Alpine Club of Canada (ACC) leased two acres of land on the south shore of Lake O'Hara near Opabin Creek for use as a site for the building of a hut: this was the site of a tent camp during the summers and was a staging point for climbers. Lillian Gest wrote that there were four iron stakes and a cairn marking the spot where the ACC was to erect the hut, but that plan was not effected after the CPR donated the original Wiwaxy Cabin and the 1919 Wiwaxy Lodge to the ACC in 1931. The ACC held its camp at O'Hara many times through the years; in 1921 it was in the Alpine Meadow and in 1925 the annual gathering was located on the ACC lease on the south shore of Lake O'Hara. MacDonald would capture this camp on canvas. The beauty of O'Hara had been brought to the attention of a broader public by the railway painters, and perhaps most notably by John Singer Sargent who travelled from Boston to the Canadian Rockies in 1916. Sargent painted first at Twin Falls. That trip was fraught with difficulty—snow and rain made travelling hazardous, and one of the falls was not flowing—so Sargent had to settle for painting midway down the single falls. His painting, Yoho Falls, is hanging today in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. Sargent wrote to a friend that one of the tribulations of that trip was the falls pounding and thundering all night, and that he stood it for three weeks before leaving. He then travelled into O'Hara where the conditions were rustic but he declared O'Hara to be the most beautiful lake he had ever seen. His large canvas (97.5 by 116.2 cm), painted at the shore of Lake O'Hara at a place forever enshrined with the name Sargent's Point, is an artistic benchmark for this classic view of the lake. Sargent transported this large canvas to Boston, sold it to Harvard's Fogg Museum in November of that year, and the painting remains hanging there today. It is hard to fully appreciate, at this remove, the extent to which this famous canvas may have excited tourists as well as art lovers. The timing of the CPR's commissioning of Wapta Bungalow Camp in 1921 may have been influenced by the fame of Sargent's painting in the societies of New England. At any rate, the new Wapta Bungalow Camp became, in effect, the gateway to O'Hara (Figure 1.7). The CPR could see that, to draw more visitors to Wapta and O'Hara, more amenities were needed; in 1919, a larger cabin-originally named Wiwaxy Lodge and known today as Elizabeth Parker Hut—was built beside the seven-year-old Wiwaxy Cabin at O'Hara. In 1921, the CPR operated the O'Hara Camp with these two cabins and five tents. By 1922, five small cabins were clustered around the two Wiwaxy cabins, and by 1924 the Lake O'Hara Bungalow Camp had swollen to eleven small cabins scattered in the Alpine Meadow around the two main cabins. To further support mountaineering, in 1922, the Swiss guides completed construction of a hut at Abbot Pass. Mountaineers could travel through O'Hara and rely on the Wiwaxy cabins, Lake O'Hara Bungalow Camp, the ACC staging area by the mouth of Opabin Creek, and the new Abbot Pass Hut high above Lake Oesa. By this time, the CPR was ardently promoting the nascent tourism trade in the mountain parks with bungalow camps at Wapta, Lake O'Hara, Yoho Valley, Emerald Lake, Moraine Lake, Storm Mountain, Vermilion, Sinclair Hot Springs, and Lake Windermere. O'Hara was the only bungalow camp that was not accessible by vehicle. It was Wapta Bungalow Camp that eased the arduous travel needed to access O'Hara. To further this new tourist trade, CPR offered rail passes to Canadian artists, enabling them to travel across the country to paint the Canadian landscape. The resulting images were to be used in brochures and advertisements for rail travel, grand hotels, and bungalow camps. (...) Chapter Two MacDonald's O'Hara Legacy Lawren Harris was largely responsible for convincing MacDonald to take his first of three trips to Algoma, Ontario, in 1918. Paul Duval writes that this was "a decision that was to prove momentous for Canadian art." It may be argued that Harris's 1924 urging for MacDonald to travel west—specifically to Lake O'Hara Bungalow Camp—was equally momentous. While the Algoma work was key to the establishment of McDonald's artistic reputation, the O'Hara work shows a renewed joy and celebration for nature. It most clearly aroused something new in the man and the artist. It is said that there resides in each person the perfect landscape in which they are at their best. It appears that, for MacDonald, the mountains touched him as no other landscape had and his last western works from 1932 show him to be truly at the top of his game, revealing glimpses of more greatness to come. MacDonald travelled more often to O'Hara than to Algoma, Georgian Bay, or Algonquin Park. (...) MacDonald was reluctant to travel west; it was his wife, Joan, who ultimately pushed him to board the train in Toronto in August 1924, courtesy of a CPR artist's pass. Four days later—after an overnight in Banff—he stepped of the train at Hector Siding, swung onto a saddle horse, and followed a guide to begin a new period in his painting life. Like many who recall their first glimpse of the Canadian Rockies, MacDonald was taken immediately by the beauty and grandness. To continue reading To See What He Saw: J.E.H. MacDonald and the O'Hara Years 1924-1932, pick up your copy available for purchase from the Whyte Museum Book Shop in Banff, Alberta. Back to the Cairn
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