2022 Culture Days
September 23-October 16, 2022
Join us for Culture Days! The MacLaren is excited to host a variety of programs and events for all ages, celebrating the cultural diversity of our artistic community in Simcoe County and beyond. Check the Culture Days section of our website for program updates!
What’s On for Culture Days 2022
National Film Board (NFB) Animations
Vistas: Little Thunder
Nance Ackerman & Alan Syliboy, 2009, 3 minutes
This animated short, inspired by the Mi’kmaq legend “The Stone Canoe” explores Indigenous humour. We follow Little Thunder as he reluctantly leaves his family and sets out on a cross-country canoe trip to become a man.
The Magic of Anansi
Jamie Mason, 2001, 6 minutes
This animated short tells the story of Anansi, a little spider who is tired of being snubbed by other the jungle animals, especially Mr. Tiger. As Anansi plots and schemes to change things, he realizes he can’t gain respect by putting others down.
The Danish Poet
Torill Kove, 2006, 15 minutes
This Oscar®-winning short animation follows Kasper, a poet whose creative well has run dry, on a holiday to Norway to meet the famous writer Sigrid Undset. Kasper attempts to answer some pretty big questions: can we trace the chain of events that leads to our own birth? Is our existence just coincidence? Do little things matter? As Kasper’s quest for inspiration unfolds, it appears that a spell of bad weather, an angry dog, slippery barn planks, a careless postman, hungry goats and other seemingly unrelated factors might play important roles in the big scheme of things after all.
Roses Sing on New Snow
Yuan Zhang, 2002, 7 minutes
In this animated short, based on a story by Paul Yee, Maylin cooks mouth-watering meals at her father’s restaurant in Chinatown, but her father and brothers take all the credit. When a dignitary from China visits and tastes one her dishes, Maylin finally earns recognition.
In-Person Programs
Saturday, September 24
Indian Block Prints: Open Air Dunlop
Date: Saturday, September 24
Time: 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Fee: Free Admission
Location: Intersection of Mulcaster & Dunlop
Have fun creating art with us outdoors! Families are invited to join regional artist Angela Aujla and learn more about the history and purpose of Indian block printing by creating an artwork using a variety of softoleum stamping techniques.
Angela Aujla was born in British Columbia and attended Simon Fraser University, receiving a BA and MA in Sociology and Anthropology. She has resided in Innisfil since the late nineties. Angela’s narrative artwork is informed by her academic practice in postcolonial theory and gender studies, and explores the complexities of history, memory, culture, and identity. She seeks to reanimate subjects left on the margins of history, with a focus on South Asian Canadian stories. Her work ranges from mixed media drawing to photo-based digital collage. Angela draws on archival images and her own photography as the basis of many of her pieces. Her work has been exhibited in Simcoe County and beyond, most recently as part of the City of Toronto’s Year of Public Art.
The Thunderbird and Other Stories
Date: Saturday, September 24
Time: 2:00 to 3:00 pm
Fee: Free Admission
Location: The Rotary Education Centre, MacLaren Art Centre
Families will be engaged in story and song as regional Indigenous storyteller Will Morin brings the Thunderbird and other myths to life. All are welcome!
Will Morin is an educator, artist and cultural consultant. He is of Ojibway/Scottish/French Canadian ancestry, a member of the Michipicoten First Nation. Will lives and works in Northern Ontario with his wife Robin and their four children. Mr. Morin obtained a B.F.A. from NSCAD in Halifax and a B.A. in Native Studies B. Ed (Aboriginal Teachers Certification Program) from Nipissing University and a Masters (M.A.) in Humanities from Laurentian University. Presently working on an Inter-disciplinary Human Studies PhD. Served in the Canadian Armed Forces during the first Gulf War, Will was trained as a Medical Assistant.
Sunday, September 25
Family Sunday: Iranian Tiles
Date: Sunday, September 25
Times: 1:00 – 2:00 pm or 2:30 – 3:30 pm
Fee: $5.00/Child or Free with MacLaren Family Membership
Location: Rotary Education Centre MacLaren Art Centre
Led by Iranian/Canadian Artist Neda Mazhab Jafari, families will create a paper mosaic collage that resembles Iranian tiles, using vibrant colour palettes, geometric shapes and floral motifs that are abundant in Iranian Islamic art.
Neda Mazhab Jafari is a multi-talented artist. She is a practicing sculptor, painter and photographer who also plays classical Iranian instruments! She was born in Tehran, Iran and currently lives in Barrie. She has a Bachelor degree in Sculpture, a Masters and a Doctorate in Art Research from the University of Art, Iran, and has been a faculty member of the University of Arts. She studied Graphic Design in Canada and then decided to focus more specifically on Digital Design.
Together Again
Date: Sunday, September 25
Time: 2:30 to 3:30 pm
Fee: Free Admission
Location: The Carnegie Room, MacLaren Art Centre
Simcoe Contemporary Dancers (SCD) presents a programme of choreography exploring social connections and relationships. SCD will also present a brand-new structured improvisation inspired by the exhibition letters by Francisco-Fernando Granados which is currently displayed in the Carnegie Room.
MacLaren Art Centre &
Barrie Native Friendship Centre
Partnership
The Barrie Native Friendship Centre has partnered with the Maclaren Art Centre for Culture Days 2022 to bring various learning opportunities to the larger Barrie community with a focus on Truth and Reconciliation. As an integral part of many Indigenous cultures, storytelling is a means of knowledge transference, cultural preservation, and forming relationship based in respect and reciprocity. It is imperative that we make space for all our relations to recount experiences, not only to make room for healing, but also to never forget the strength and resilience of those who have gone before us. To continue to honour their legacy and strength in the next seven generations to come. That we may ALL continue to collectively endeavour to be better and not allow history to repeat itself.
Tuesday, September 27
Lunch and Learn: National Day of Truth and Reconciliation
Date: Tuesday, September 27
Time: Noon to 1:00 pm
Fee: Free Admission
Location: The Carnegie Room, MacLaren Art Centre
In recognition of National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, join us for a talk with a residential school survivor Bernard Nelson. Organized by the Barrie Native Friendship Centre.
Bernard Nelson is a Residential School Survivor of the Pelican Lake Indian Residential School in Sioux Lookout, ON. His ancestry is Cree and Ojibway and his grandmother delivered him in 1958, in Ombabika, ON, a remote northern area near Lake Nipigon in Canada. He remembers watching his grandparents as a young boy survive off the land; trapping, hunting, fishing, picking wild rice and gathering medicines, cutting wood, hauling wood and water, traveling by canoe in the summer, and snowshoeing in the winter. Bernard is a long time Men’s Traditional Dancer, Eagle Staff Carrier, Pipe Carrier, and Sundancer who lives his life by following the Seven Grandfather Traditional Teachings such as Love, Respect, Honesty, Humility, Bravery, Wisdom, and Truth, and living the Ceremonial ways of his people. He works with First Nation, Metis, and Inuit students from all over Canada. Some of his work includes the Assembly of First Nation Canada, Students Commission of Canada, Pathways/YMCA Youth Exchange, Teach for Canada, as well as work within various School Boards.
Sunday, October 16
Lunch and Learn: The 60’s Scoop
Date: Sunday, October 16
Time: Noon to 1:00 pm
Fee: Free Admission
Location: The Carnegie Room, MacLaren Art Centre
Join us for a talk with a 60’s Scoop Survivor Matthew Rutledge. All are welcome. Organized by the Barrie Native Friendship Centre.
Matthew Rutledge has been working in the Urban Indigenous community for 15 years. He is currently the Health Outreach worker at the Parry Sound Friendship Centre. He is Ojibwe born in Red Lake, Ontario. His father was from Lac Seul First Nation and his mother was from Little Grand Rapids. He is a 60’s Scoop Survivor, raised in Toronto since he was four years old. He began dancing traditional for more than ten years.
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