Rooted in Relations

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Courtesy of Gallery 1C03.

Rooted in Relations is an exhibition of works from the University of Winnipeg’s art collection created by eight Inuit and First Nations artists. The exhibition is curated by Indigenous and non-Indigenous students of UWinnipeg’s Indigenous Theory and Curatorial Practices course (GENG-7820/HIST-4833), taught by Associate Professor, History of Art, Dr. Cathy Mattes. The exhibition reflects the core principles and teachings of the course which includes continuous learning, engagement with Indigenous Knowledge Systems, and decolonial practices.

Rooted in Relations emerges from the interwoven threads of familial ties, braided together through storytelling and visual imagery centering relationality and kinship. It is grounded in a central theme: pre-existing, inherited, and continuous bodies of Indigenous knowledges that incubate fortitude and pride, traversing and distributing through a root’s system of reciprocal, interdependent relations between all life forms. Rooted in Relations decenters and challenges the colonial notion that relationality is only viable in human-to-human form. It reinforces the Indigenous understanding that kinship lives and thrives in the interconnectivity of all living things: land, water, plants, animals, ancestors, spirits, Creator and communities.

Rooted in Relations offers a holistic journey through time, relationships, and ongoing acts of building, attracting and nurturing kin and community. Centered within this unyielding and resilient cycle, we are reminded that we are defined by our relations, and our relations are the roots from which the network of life originates and circulates.

The exhibition is open weekdays between 1:00 and 4:00 pm from June 2 until August 1, 2025. We will be closed July 1. Admission is free.