together with, all at once (mâmawi)

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Kacy Salkeld, “She is Looking Fine and Killing It,” 2024

acrylic on stretched canvas (courtesy of the Gallery)

Opening Reception: October 19th, 12 - 3 pm - lower sensory, dry opening; and 6 - 9 pm 

Artists: Kathy M. Austin, Paul Brain, Daniel Desaulniers, Lucas Kayseas, Jessica Kowalski, Andre Paradis, and Kacy Salkeld. Curated by Kay Thomas 

together with, all at once (mâmawi) brings together the stories and artworks of seven Calgary-based artists with the National accessArts Centre Ways of Knowing artist cohort.

Over the past year, Kathy M. Austin, Paul Brain, Daniel Desaulniers, Lucas Kayseas, Jessica Kowalski, Andre Paradis, and Kacy Salkeld have met weekly with Métis artist and cohort lead Kay Thomas to share stories, ask questions, and learn about how artists living with disabilities can engage with the histories and cultural practices of Indigenous Peoples of Treaty 7 Territory.

The artists’ works presented here were created in response to these conversations and seek to honour the teachings they have received about what respect for the land can look like when Indigenous ways of knowing and making are held at the centre.

Paintings by Lucas Kayseas and Daniel Desaulniers reflect on personal and emotional relationships with landscapes and formations, both real and imagined. Andre Paradis’ video work explores his close friendship with fellow artist Roby King and invites us to witness the care held between two friends in a special country place. 

Kathy M. Austin’s installation considers the relationships between land, home, and family, reflecting how we may express care by honouring the lands and special places that have cared for us and our loved ones. Paul Brain and Jessica Kowalski take on material explorations to reflect on the ways that colonial histories and worldviews disrupt and destroy balance found in nature. 

Kacy Salkeld’s life-size self-portrait combines her Scottish ancestry with plants and animals from this region, offering a vibrant space for reflection on how ancestral histories connect with the histories of other living things.

The title of this exhibition, together with, all at once (mâmawi), comes from cohort lead Kay Thomas. It describes the ways the artists have made space through their practices for collaboration, care, and honouring their relationships with each other and the lands they share. In response, the artists wrote the following collaborative poem, which speaks to their individual and collective experiences through the Ways of Knowing cohort.

     we all work together 

     we all have fun

     brain our mind together as one 

     creativity blossoms 

     the brain explores new ideas

     we have a beautiful day on the land 

     a shared journey echoes the ancestors‍

together with, all at once (mâmawi) marks the first collaboration between the National accessArts Centre Ways of Knowing artist cohort and The Bows. An intentional act of relationship building, our work together seeks to honour and continue the work of an exploratory land acknowledgment project housed by The Bows called Living Text.

The invitation for this collaboration was initially presented to Blackfoot/Dane-zaa Cree artist and member of Siksika Nation, Richelle Bear Hat, a core contributor to Living Text and the creator of the Ways of Knowing artist cohort, who sewed the initial seeds for the program with NaAC and nurtured its growth during its first two years.

‍Living Text is a project and digital archive about acknowledging land: its past, present and future, and the people who have cared for it since time immemorial, who care for and defend it today, and who will continue to care for and defend it in the years, decades and centuries to come. The work of Living Text was formed through conversations held in 2019 between Richelle Bear Hat, Natasha Chaykowski, Tamara Lee-Anne Cardinal, and Curtis Running Rabbit-Lefthand.

We would like to thank Richelle Bear Hat, Ginger Carlson, Toni Cormier, Yvonne Kustec, Wednesday Lupypciw, Kylie Poppe, Raewyn Reid, and Katie Wackett for the generous support that they have provided throughout the development of this exhibition.