Curators' Talk: "To Reunite To Honour To Witness"

Guest curated by Dr. Andrea Walsh (Anthropology) and Dr. Robina Thomas (Social Work).

The vibrant and powerful paintings in this exhibition were created by children who attended the Alberni Indian Residential School in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The works were created in an extra-curricular art class run by artist Robert Aller. Over 50 years later, residential school survivors who attended the school and created these paintings are working together with UVIC faculty and staff to document the role of art in residential schools through individual stories and works of art. The paintings in this exhibition provide an exceptional and rare opportunity to witness the power of children's creativity during residential schooling, when their voices were actively silenced by assimilationist government policies. The exhibition asks viewers to consider the role of this art today at a time when Canada is attempting reconciliation around this history with Indigenous peoples.