Public Art Call for Emerging Indigenous Artists
Parks Canada Agency and the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies seek up to three Indigenous artists to create temporary mural paintings, to be displayed prominently on the grounds at Cave and Basin National Historic Site.
This call is open in 2022 to all Indigenous artists 18 years of age and older from Îyârhe Nakoda (Stoney), Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) and Tsuut’ina communities who are looking to increase their knowledge of mural painting and large-scale public art-making.
This jointly funded initiative is supported by Parks Canada (Cave and Basin National Historic Site) and the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. It is an opportunity to create three large temporary murals (approx. 8ft wide x 8ft high x 8 ft long) for temporary display at Cave and Basin National Historic Site in Banff, Alberta.
These murals will provide Indigenous artists from Treaty 7 nations (Blackfoot Confederacy, Tsuut’tina, Îyârhe Nakoda) a space to express their perspectives on Indigenous histories of the Cave and Basin and the Banff/Bow Valley Region. This is an opportunity for Indigenous artists, Elders, and community members as well as Parks Canada and the Whyte Museum staff to come together, connect with the site and share perspectives through art and storytelling.
The completed murals will be an opportunity for all visitors to the Cave and Basin to learn about the diverse Indigenous stories, histories and experiences that live in this special place.
Situated just outside the Town of Banff at the base of Sulphur Mountain, Cave and Basin has been a special place for Indigenous Peoples for over ten thousand years to the present. It is also the site of Canada’s first national park, where settlers built swimming pools, historic architecture and tourism activity following the arrival of the railway. At the heart of this multi-layered and sometimes difficult history are the mineral hot springs, geological features and unique ecology that have drawn people here for millennia. Today, the site is a national historic site and museum visited each year by hundreds of thousands of people from around the world; a gathering place for sharing stories about the connections between people and the land in special places across the northern reaches of Turtle Island.
Applications should be submitted electronically in PDF format to cheyenne.bearspaw@pc.gc.ca.
The email subject line should read Indigenous Artist MENTEE Application.
Deadline to apply is March 4, 2022, at 11:59pm.
For more information about the project, or to arrange a meeting via phone, video conference or in person, please contact Project Coordinator, Dawn Saunders Dahl by email dsaundersdahl@whyte.org.
For more information visit whyte.org.
