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| - Kind of bummed that everyone is hating so hard on the "permanent" exhibits at the Glenbow. Some of them, I could take or leave, but I feel as though the exhibits on Alberta, as well as the First Nations peoples are too important to omit. It was only in my Canadian Studies courses at the University of Calgary that I really learned in depth about Alberta's history, the National Energy Project, etc. The Glenbow provides excellent information on Alberta. I remember my friend having a couchsurfer from Germany this summer who had attended these exhibits, and when we all met up for a hike this week, he had gained enough information to have a long chat in the car with me about Alberta's history.
One thing I really disagree with about the Glenbow, however, is their handling of certain "artifacts". I have heard many accounts of how an item at the Glenbow has belonged to a family member, or someone from their reserve, but the Glenbow has failed to return these items. Some may say, whatever, it's a museum, right? Well, this past spring, there was quite a lot of controversy around this issue, as the Glenbow was auctioning many of their First Nations archives off. It was really heartbreaking to see. In one of my Indigenous Studies courses at the time, we gained acess to this list of items being auctioned off. It included beautiful paintings, useful utensils and tools, beautifully beaded dresses/garments, etc. On each listing, they were able to identify exactly what area of Canada, and which band it came from. Hey Glenbow- here's a thought...if you have all of these excess archives, you know exactly where they came from, and you actually care about your relationship with the First Nations community and the descendants of the owners of some of these items... why not return them, as opposed to auctioning them off for pitiful prices? After all, it's not like you made these things yourselves, and many of these items come from areas within Calgary's vicinity. We considered going to this auction to raise some ruckus, or to rescue some of these items from their fate, but unfortunately had a class that evening. Maybe I've just watched too many documentaries on repatriation (ex. "Stolen Spirits of the Haida Gwaii," you all should watch it!) but since this incident, I always have a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth when I think about visiting the Glenbow. DRAMA!
Also, for those interested in some extra reading, here is an article about ANOTHER auction at the Glenbow just this September. It makes me throw up in my mouth.
http://www.metronews.ca/calgary/local/article/982804--calgary-artifact-auction-stirs-first-nations-furore
The bitter taste is still there, but I managed to try and put this aside when I took my little new media studying brother to the Watch Me Move animation exhibit over the weekend. The exhibit itself was really lovely to watch, and I enjoyed the setting of the viewing stations as well on the big cozy sitting things and the sound isolating headphones. There were a few really cool animators featured.
In order to support one of Calgary's only museums, I will try and continue to visit the Glenbow, but I have to say I am more than a little upset about these events, and can only hope that this museum will come to its senses.
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