July 1st - Ociciwan Holiday Closure

Holiday Closure

Ociciwan will be closed on July 1st (Canada Day).

Join us on Thursday, July 2nd to check out Miyo Wâhkôhtowin, a new body of work from stone sculptor Arsene Arcand!

Gallery Hours: Wednesday, Friday, Saturdays, 12- 5PM, Thursdays, 2-7 PM

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Miyo Wâhkôhtowin presents new work by nêhiyaw (Cree) artist Arsene Joseph Alexander Arcand, Edmonton’s fourth Indigenous Artist in Residence. Presented at Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre in partnership with the Edmonton Arts Council and the City of Edmonton’s Indigenous Relations Office, the exhibition reflects teachings of kinship, protection, ceremony, and care through stone carving practices grounded in nêhiyaw knowledge and ancestral connection. 

The theme of Arsene’s new body of work for this year’s residency is centered around teachings of the moss bag. The pieces are visual interpretations of a moss bag, what we use to swaddle a baby in Indigenous traditional parenting. The stone motifs of a moss bag is a reminder to return to ôpikinasowin, meaning the act of raising children in nêhiyawêwin, the Cree language. For everything that is ceremonially significant to us, we keep it safe in a bag. This is protection from the outside world, mimicking the warmth and safety of your mother’s womb. Your body is a moss bag for your spirit. Many of the carvings are hollow inside to represent the opportunity to fill the space with something good. It represents the significance of our potential as human beings.