Latest news with #GregoryScofield
CTV News
03-07-2025
- General
- CTV News
‘These are works that hold stories': Métis collection returns to Manitoba
An exhibit honouring the resilience of Métis elders now has a permanent home in Winnipeg. An exhibition telling the story of Métis Elders is now back in Manitoba. The Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) revealed it is now the steward of the 'Our Grandmothers' collection, an exhibit that will now be housed at the Red River Métis National Heritage Centre when it opens in 2027. 'This is more than a collection, it is an artistic and culturally relevant legacy,' said Anita Campbell, finance minister with the MMF. The exhibit contains 142 items curated over two decades by Gregory Scofield. 'The collection came about because of the lack of Métis visibility, the lack of Métis representation that was being kind of found or at least that I was finding, in museum and gallery collections across the country,' he said. 'Our pieces, if they were featured in those spaces, were often folded into First Nations exhibits and there was very little, if any, presence for Western Canadian Métis people in history and culture and material art in those spaces.' The collection includes silk-embroidered pieces, children's jackets, gloves and other items from Métis communities dating back as early as 1830. 'These are the works of our ancestor grandmothers,' Scofield said. 'These are works that they were producing at various times throughout our history. These works are more than just material objects; these are works that hold stories. These are works that hold geographies and histories and communities.' Scofield said pieces from the collection were found across Canada and even as far away as the United Kingdom and Italy.
CBC
02-07-2025
- General
- CBC
'Our Grandmothers' artifact collection acquired for future Métis centre at newly reopened Portage and Main
A trove of artifacts dating back two centuries — including silk- and quillwork, beaded jackets and fur stretchers — have found their way to the site of a forthcoming centre at the heart of downtown Winnipeg showcasing Métis history. The Manitoba Métis Federation unveiled a newly acquired 142-piece collection, titled the "Our Grandmothers Collection," on Wednesday at the future Red River Métis National Heritage Centre, housed at the former Bank of Montreal building at the southeast corner of Portage and Main. "This is truly a reflection of the MMF's commitment to bring our history home," said Anita Campbell, the MMF's minister of finance, human resources and information technology at a news conference. "The reopening of Portage and Main ties in very well to the opening of our heritage centre, where we'll be inviting our citizens, the public, researchers, artists, schoolchildren and visitors from all around the world to come and learn about our people, our history and our culture." The unveiling coincides with MMF's celebration of the reopening of Portage Avenue and Main Street to foot traffic, which happened Friday after nearly 46 years. The federation completed a stewardship transfer of the Our Grandmothers Collection this year with Gregory Scofield, an author, University of Victoria professor and Red River Métis beadwork artist who is the curator of the collection. He spent more than two decades hunting down and preserving the artifacts. For the collection, "coming home means the grandmothers, first and foremost, are not lost or circulating out in the world far away from us, their little ancestors," said Scofield, author of Our Grandmother's Hands: Repatriating Métis Material Art. " It also means they're not sitting in boxes or storage bins. It means they are not being used as currency in galleries or auction houses with prices attached to their worth.... It means they are no longer forgotten." The collection includes dozens of items, including ornate bead-, silk- and quillwork, along with embroidery and weaving, art, clothing, horse blankets and fire bags — some dating back to 1830, said Campbell. The works, most made by Métis women, join a growing collection amassed by the federation to be unveiled in early 2027, when the Red River National Heritage Centre is slated to open. "The collection represents our homeland geographically and demonstrates our migration, fashion, mobility and identity as a people," said Campbell, who is also spokesperson for the Infinity Women Secretariat, a non-profit affiliated with the MMF that advocates for Métis women. "This is more than a collection. It is an artistic and culturally relevant legacy." The broader collection includes poems by Louis Riel, the Métis leader recognized as Manitoba's honorary first premier in 2023 after legislation passed by the NDP government. 'Bold, transformational' investment in downtown: mayor The federation bought the former Bank of Montreal building at Portage and Main in 2020, with plans to transform it into the centre. Last year, it acquired two nearby buildings — 333 Main St. and 191 Pioneer Ave. — along with a surface parking lot. Provincial Housing, Homelessness and Addictions Minister Bernadette Smith, who is a member of the Métis Nation, acknowledged the significance of the location as a hub for trade, diplomacy and kinship. "It's also a place where the Métis Nation was born and where its spirit continues to thrive," said the Point Douglas MLA. "Today we mark more than just a reopening of a street corner — we celebrate the powerful act of reconnection between the Red River Métis and the land that had always been called home." Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham acknowledged the MMF's efforts to help revitalize the iconic street corner, which reopened to street-level pedestrian crossing on Friday, after decades of allowing only underground crossing at Portage and Main. While the idea of reopening was voted down in a 2018 plebiscite, Gillingham led a motion to do that, without public consultation, in 2024, on the heels of a report that pegged cost of repairs to the barricaded-intersection and underground concourse in the range of $73 million. That same report suggested it would cost much less to reopen Portage and Main. "The MMF's investment in this intersection and in the city's core … is bold, transformational and deeply appreciated," Gillingham said. "There's so much work that we have yet to do, but it's part of the progress we're all making … to build a downtown for everyone." MMF President David Chartrand said on top of acquiring roughly 600,000 square feet of space downtown in recent years, the federation has also moved about 600 of its employees into its offices in Winnipeg's core, in part to help downtown recover from a lingering economic downturn driven by the pandemic. "I can't wait to see the finishing product of the beautification of downtown," said Chartrand. "It's not yet finished…. The beautification that we [have] the privilege of seeing, where the mayor and city is going, is going to make you feel a great sigh of relief that Portage and Main is alive."
Global News
02-07-2025
- General
- Global News
MMF to display ‘Our Grandmothers' collection of historical and cultural Métis items
The Manitoba Métis Federation says it has received rare historical and cultural items that will be permanently housed in its Heritage Centre, which is slated to open in 2027. The collection of cultural artifacts, dubbed the Our Grandmothers collection, includes 142 items curated by professor and artisan Gregory Scofield. It includes clothing, embroidery, beadwork and more, which the MMF says showcases Métis identity, mobility and fashion. The MMF announced the collection during its celebration Wednesday morning recognizing the reopening of Portage and Main to pedestrian traffic. View image in full screen The MMF announced a collection of historical and cultural items. Jordan Pearn / Global News 'This acquisition is part of the MMF's ongoing commitment to reclaiming and preserving the history of the Red River Métis, ensuring it is safeguarded, cared for, and celebrated for generations to come,' MMF president David Chartrand said in a statement. Story continues below advertisement 'This moment marks not only a transformative step in the revitalization and renewal of downtown Winnipeg, but also a powerful affirmation of the Red River Métis' re-emerging presence at the heart of our city and our homeland.'
