About
WHEAT Institute
Memorial Gallery
Call Out for Contributions: Memorial Gallery
tânisi, Greetings to all. This is a call out for all who are inspired to contribute to our Online Memorial Gallery. We are creating this Memorial Gallery to acknowledge the pain, grief, outrage, shame and blame currently being resurfaced with the recent horrific news of the children found buried at what once was the site of the Kamloops Residential School. Simultaneously we wish to honor the trauma and the strength of Survivors and Descendants and bring much needed attention the ongoing Legacy of the Indian Residential School Era, to make visible the continuing ripple effects into our shared worlds today, and to commit to ongoing reconcileActions to do our part to bring awareness to and make change in all of our circles of influence. To encourage the launch of the Memorial Gallery, Dr. Fyre Jean Graveline, Lead of Indigenized Healing Arts Programming at WHEAT Institute, wishes to offer this Response Art, an Eco-Art Image, created with Food Paints, with an accompanying Poetic Inquiry. We encourage you to send in your heARTfelt contributions to info@wheatinstitute.com.
BlueberryBeet, BeetCarrot, BEAM©Blue, Turmeric, Coffee, Dandelion, Ash, Onion.
When I Heard the Recent Horrific News
Dr. Fyre Jean Graveline
When i Heard. The Recent Horrific News….
i Took it. Directly. to my Heart. my heARTs.
i Grabbed. my Food Paints. my BlueberryBeet. and Made. a Pour.
on a Big Page. This. is a Big Event. Wake Up. Canada. i Pray
(continued)
Read the full Poetic Inquiry:
Listen to a reading of the Poetic Inquiry:
Faceless dolls for the Children who were found in BC
Starlynn Shears-Osmond
The child is chained to the adult and wearing a peaked hat, prayer hat.
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Listen to a reading of the Poetic Inquiry:
one ~ pêyak acâhk
Darci Adam
one
precious one
one perfect form
original in nature
sacred one
one
pêyak acâhk
pêyak poko acâhk
pimotêw êkwa acâhk
mamâhtawisiw acâhk
miyosiw acâhk
pêyak acâhk
Thank you to Dr. Kevin Lewis and his family, our Cree teachers, for supporting our Cree learning journey at WHEAT Institute.
The Indian Act in Comics
Damian John
Professional artist and muralist working with acrylic, digital, and sculptural mediums. The three images below were done in relationship to Damian's current art show “The Indian Act in Comics”, which is an exploration of the Indian Act and cultural genocide as perpetrated by the Canadian government, the British empire, and the Catholic and Protestant churches. They are set in a poster/comic cover style on purpose as this is what the show covers. You can be view Damian's art show online at https://caribouwoman.com/indian-act-in-comics
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Gift of Awareness
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Gift of Awareness painting by Kait Matthews
In memory of her mother Bette George
One of the many children take to the Mohawk Institute aka The Mush Hole
For Bette
From left to right – over and over….
the beginning,
the sun,
the life-giving water, turtle island emerging-
the trees-Anishinaabe.
the owl, forebearer of a dark time descending.
Mother, symbolic of family
Reaching out to hang onto her child,
her pride
her respect
her culture.
The stone-cold arm of the white man
whose belief in Christianity is so forceful and strong.
He rips her child away
So many children away.
Night sky turns to red
Painted with the blood of the suffering.
the trees burn to black
souls swallowed by fire
burned, forgotten.
Buried.
The underlying stream of water continually flows,
water that gives life and hope
a salve on the pain of the past,
that we,
That they,
That history
Should never forget.
Scars are permanent.
So many words unheard
So much lost.
The Eagle offers strength to the scarred
and the gift of awareness for future generations…
Night is peace, solace in the dream world.
A healing time.
The water, the stars
comfort those who are in the spirit realm now,
and console those who are still here.
They teach all Anishinaabe
Offering wisdom for the future….
37,500 plus plus plus
Virginia Jahyu
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Land Beneath our Feet
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Lauren Harms
Lately I've noticed that my perception of the land beneath our feet has shifted.
I can hear the cry of First Nations, Inuit and Metis children rising up from the earth.
As I walk this land, I wonder
What would this country have been like
if white colonizers had listened at the feet of Elders?
What would this country have been like
if white colonizers had shown gratitude for what had been graciously gifted?
What would this country have been like
if white colonizers had chosen relationship and humility rather than domination?
What would this country have been like
if each child had known love of self, culture and community?
What would this country have been like
if each child had lived?
And these choices are before us today.
Will we listen to our Indigenous, Black and all kin of colour?
Will we listen to our creature and plant kin?
Will we listen to the earth and the water which sustains us?
An elder once shared that it takes 12 times for a person to hear something to truly understand.
And it takes 25 more times for them to change their ways.
And we need change.
So we better pay attention.
We need the truth to cut to our hearts and destroy the foundations of white supremacy
A system that plagues us all.
This economic, greed driven, individual focused, white centered, fucked up system
Needs to die.
And we need all people, all gifts and abilities
With those who have been marginalized at the center
To reshape
Recreate
Transform
How we can live and be together.
May we be reborn.
May this country be reborn.
NIGHTMARES
Marcel Joseph DaCosta
*Trigger warning* ⚠️ Sensitive themes & nudity, viewer discretion is advised.
NIGHTMARES was created in relation to awareness of systemic affects involving the Residential school system and “Starlight tours” that have been responsible for the abuse and murder of countless indigenous community members across Canada. View online on Instagram HERE
Facing and healing any type of trauma can be a life long endeavor. It is brave and strong to ask for support regardless of ones circumstance or who you are, you’re not alone. Help is available. Never give up…ever 🦅
Canadian Suicide prevention line: +1 833 456 4566
Tiny Orange Sweater Project
Tammy Saigeon
A sea of Tiny Orange Sweaters to represent humanity coming together to express commitment to reconciliation, coming together to deeply commit to the strength of the collective circle. It all started with a small display from two strong women allies and grew by a few more, and then a few more, then Canada wide and 400 strong Indigenous and Allies , growing in collective strength reaching from hands to heart growing globally . May we stay in the warm. Of. The circle always through the generations.
To learn more visit: https://www.facebook.com/groups/328077959023299/
Collection of Poetry
Chuck Fraser
Speak Up for the Stolen Children
Jean Tait
As more and graves of missing and murdered children were found over the summer of 2021 at residential school locations, what showed up immediately for me was Mother Earth and her many layers. The footprints of small ones who would never grow to take their place back at home or their communities. Their transformation took a different path. They were never to return to where they had been taken from… never to return to their culture. They might have been… We’ll never know. We need to honour their Spirits and speak up for the stolen generations of children, as they cannot speak for themselves. If not now… when?!
Listening
April Penny
Truths Arise
Patricia Ki
215 Tears for Kamloops
Spirits Rising
Both images by Art Therapist and Artist Jessie Buchanan
breathe life into the long arc
Suzanne Thomson
lay open the newspaper
many stories revealed
interrupt
commit to acknowledge
horrors
known and not yet known
penetrate
the impulse to brace
sense
the broken-hearted ground
1 in 4 Indigenous children
murdered
genocide
reverberates
in every aspect of life
pause
lay open the newspaper
acknowledge
the horrific news
soak in the orange ink
stain and saturate
white brush bristles
inhale
gather energy from Mother Earth’s core
reach deep
through many layers
core softening
heart aches
ongoing heartbreak
open fully to the painful truths
unimaginable suffering
across the generations
exhaling
the brush meets the newsprint
orange enso
breakthrough the print
acknowledging with each circle
every Indigenous child’s life extinguished
open to complicity
response-ability
account
one by one by one
breathe as each breath is the last
breathe deep
connect to ALL
no part left out
connect to ancestors
known and unknown
extend out to future descendants
blood and not of my blood
we are all relatives
breathe life into the long arc
expand and extend
right to be
believe
belong
become
each and every breath
reset
commit to uplift ALL
Resources and Services:
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Indian Residential School Survivors Society Counselling Services
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Survivors crisis line is open 24 hours a day & 7 days a week: 1-800-721-0066
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The National Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419
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The WHEAT Online Wellness Centre provides online groups, individual art therapy and expressive arts sessions for healing and wellness. Our wellness centre will focus on enhancing client wellness through creativity.