Indigenous Curators
The repatriation and continuously growing relationships between museums and Indigenous Peoples have proven successful through various ways, including land acknowledgements, building rapport, and displaying exhibits with Indigenous voices, perspectives and ideologies. The Galt Museum & Archives has pursued these local relationships by hosting Indigenous-led exhibitions and in-house exhibitions that incorporate Indigenous voices, history and perspectives.
Lethbridge Eats: Cafes to Corner Stores, curated by Aimee Benoit, delved into the history of what, how, and where we eat. The exhibit included traditional Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) foodways, with Api'soomahka, William Singer III, showcasing different types of traditional foods that the Blackfoot prepared.
Among several exhibits curated by Indigenous and Métis experts, the Galt hosted Iiksisawaato'p Kainaiwa O'tookatakssin: Maana'pii ki niita'piitsitapii saatstakssin | We Visit with Kainaiwa Beadwork: A New Way and the Real Way of Design, hosted by Dr. Carol Williams, Hali Heavy Shield and Kalli Eagle Speaker. The exhibit showcased photographs and physical pieces of modern and historical beadwork. As an individual who worked on the exhibition, it was remarkable to be a part of the process, from choosing and translating the name to helping arrange the photo displays for the exhibit. The exhibit will be on display again for visitors in 2022.
The Galt's first exhibition in 2022 will be the Breathe. (2nd Wave) exhibit created and organized by Métis artists Nathalie Bertin and Lisa Shepherd. The exhibit tells personal stories and anecdotes regarding navigating life and culture through the COVID-19 pandemic, with a local component that will display local Blackfoot and Stoney artists' beaded masks and creations. Aimee Benoit and Kalli Eagle Speaker curated the local portion of the exhibit.