By Jaclyn Hayward
Whether you’re committed to learning the truth or you’ve known, and lived the truths your whole life, Sho Sho Esquiro: Doctrine of Discovery provides a powerful and emotional experience at the Bill Reid Gallery.
The Doctrine of Discovery facade, sheer and weak like a nylon stocking, was placed over the proverbial Canadian’s head for years, acting like a mask to shield from the real truth of what “we” are; Sho Sho Esquiro opens it to expose and free a truth. Through various forms of art and artifacts, an exciting tale of strength and beauty is told alongside another tale of trauma, injustice and resilience. Esquiro’s pieces come together like a puzzle and highlight the real story of the land; the real story of a people using assorted mediums.
The exhibit is carefully configured with items from her life and hometown, like a photo of an uncle holding pelts. The tale told feels deeply personal; rooted geographically in a place, but felt like ripples as present day stories are weaved in. You see smiles and frowns of activists, smiles and frowns of family. Relatable images; or as a settler: earnest and vulnerable ones. Esquiro masterfully stitches and sews together new fabrics of reference – fashion – some in the form of couture gowns that are captivating and made ethereal but tough, representative of the strength and beauty in the matriarchs that might wear them; some in the form of statement pieces marked with powerful paradoxical images and messages.
Memorably, a vest is seen etched with a message that reverberates loudly in our brains: “they took the children from the land, they took the land from the children” – particularly because the words are true, painful, reprehensible, deplorable, enraging; but also timely because we recently passed September 30th and this marked day for listening and learning.
As usual, this exhibit like others held at the Bill Reid Gallery is a must-see as you #SupportIndigenousArtists and experience a tale told in high fashion about collectivity, resilience, and home. Catch the exhibit now before June 2022 and follow the Bill Reid Gallery for information about this exhibit and more.
*Photos shared with permission from gallery
This exhibit is a continuation of the journey of reclamation and rebuilding bonds of cultural knowledge. An original reboot of the Tāpis exhibit, it adds three new makers now holding the knowledge of tāpis/tuppies (dog blankets).
When Adele ᒪᐢᑿᓱᐤᐃᐢᑵᐤ asked to be taught this knowledge from her mentor, it was with the intent of restoring important cultural knowledge taken from so many Northern Nations. For this cohort, Adele ᒪᐢᑿᓱᐤᐃᐢᑵᐤ chose makers who exhibited personal and cultural ethics close to her own, along with levels of skill necessary to undertake such a large project. “Each of these blankets takes a minimum of 200 hours (or more) to be brought to completion. It is with great pride to be able to showcase this exhibit. It has been created to show the beauty and celebration of dog regalia as completed by Michif, Dene, and other Nations to celebrate our valued dog kin.”
Originating from the Métis, Northern Cree, and Dene communities, ‘li tāpis’ (small carpet), named by the French Michif and known as ‘tuppies’ by the English and Scottish Michif, are dog blanket regalia created to celebrate dogs. Tāpis are made from wool and embellished with intricate beadwork, silk embroidery, moose or caribou hair tufting, fringed with ribbon or yarn and adorned with bells. Showing respect for sled dogs, tāpis were draped over the backs of dogs.