Culture Camp 2024
Ih’taaapiinii’mopa Inn’siimaan
Healing Together Stories and Circles
In partnership with Indigenous organizations and local elders, we invited community members to participate in educational awareness activities that combine storytelling, cooking and sharing traditional foods, and using plants as medicine.
The art pieces shown below showcase the visual reflections of the Healing Circle/workshop participants and include Wolf Willow Bracelets, Ribbon Skirts, and Medicine Pouches. Scroll to learn about each art piece and the artist who created it.
Ribbon Skirt Workshop
“What we know today as the modern Ribbon Skirt is a collaboration. Adapted from both the European design and the Buckskin dresses, T-dresses, and ceremonial skirts of the Woodlands and Plains, our ancestors modified that design with Indigenous and European materials, patterns and techniques. This is not unlike how the Métis themselves came to be, and to me, the Ribbon Skirt becomes a beautiful analogy of our storied and vibrant culture, acceptance of the past and valuing all our roots.”
Read more on the original authors webpage:
Artist: anonymous
Artist: Hateya Clark
“This skirt means alot to me for many reasons, the main reason being a chance to learn more about our history.”
Artist: anonymous
Artist: anonymous
Artist: anonymous
Artist: anonymous
Wolf Willow Workshop
“Wolf Willow or Silver Berry is a bush that grows 30 cm to 6 m high in the wet areas of the plains and at the edges of coulees. It shimmers silver in the sun and moonlight, with the flowers, berries and leaves all being a shade of silver. The flowers are silver yellow and grow to be about 3 mm across. The flowers grow together in groups of 3 or 4 in June. They are very fragrant and often you can smell a Wolf Willow before you see it. When the berries come in late July and August, they are a silvery green colour about 6 mm in diameter. They are tough skinned and contain a large, stony seed.”
Read about traditional uses on the original authors webpage:
Artist: Hateya Clark
Artist: Victor R. Rabbit
Artist: anonymous
Artist: Ian Devine
Artist: Natasha Day Rider
Artist: Ross Sagutch
Artist: Kristen Colton
Artist: Amber Scout
Medicine Pouch Workshop
“Medicine bundles (also called “sacred bundles”), wrapped collections of spiritually significant items, were the focus of most Indigenous spiritual rituals in the Plains region (see Plains Indigenous Peoples in Canada). A bundle might be a few feathers wrapped in skin or a multitude of objects such as animal skins, roots, or stone pipes inside a rawhide bag.”
Read more on the original authors webpage:
Artist: Evelyn Zawaski
Artist: Glenda Jenson
Artist: Kelly Vanderhooft
Artist: Jason Loat
Artist: Haley Gray
Artist: anonymous
Artist: Dillon Knife
Artist: anonymous
Artist: Kayle Takesgun
Artist: anonymous
