The Witness Blanket, by Kwagiulth / Salish Artist Carey Newman, is comprised of hundreds of artifacts, each with its
own story, from and relating to Canada’s residential schools. The pieces are
mounted on cedar panels and are ‘woven’ together to create a blanket of shared
memories.
How did a small, rural museum like the Peace River
Museum, Archives, and Mackenzie Centre (PRMA) become a host venue for the nationally-acclaimed
exhibit The Witness Blanket? It was all
due to the collective resourcing of three partners: Sagitawa Friendship
Society, Peace River Correctional Centre, and the PRMA. By building on existing
relationships and acknowledging the diversity each partner brought to achieving
this goal, we were able to accomplish something that just one could not. We
began in January 2015, and over the next 18 months prepared to receive ‘the
Ancestors’, the Witness Blanket, on June 28, 2016.
Dave Matilpi, Aboriginal Elder, artist and teacher, mentored
us at our meetings and through cultural teachings and a workshop he calls My Broken Journey. We learned of his
life experiences, including as a residential school student. Most importantly,
he shared the optimism he holds today for the healing and reconciliation that
began across Canada.
