Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, England

Blackfoot Shirts Conference

Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, England

March 28 to April 1, 2011

Connecting with Community

The Galt Museum & Archives is a small sized museum in Lethbridge, Alberta which has a population 85,000 and is located in the middle of Blackfoot traditional lands. The museum is supported by City Council and governed by a volunteer Board. We have a locally focused human history collection which includes some 20,000 artifacts, 300,000 photos, and 130 linear meters of manuscript and print materials, as well as books, maps and audio visual pieces. The permanent gallery tells the human history of southwestern Alberta and a special exhibit gallery and several smaller areas change three times a year with in-house and travelling exhibits. Curriculum based school program are presented to close to 10,000 students and community programs are offered to people of all ages. Approximately 45,000 people visit yearly. Our Special Events, Museum Store and rental spaces help support the museum with operating funds. There are 12 full time permanent staff, 2 part time permanent staff, 7 to9 seasonal and part time staff and some 260 volunteers who contributed over 12,000 hours in 2010.

Over the past several years,the Galt has made a conscious choice not to function in a vacuum with regard to its surrounding and contributing community. On several occasions we have had the opportunity to work closely with people from many groups in our diverse community; Aboriginal and non-aboriginal.

When Dr. Laura Peers approached the Galt Museum & Archives to see if our museum would be interested in working with the Pitt Rivers Museum, Blackfoot people, and the Glenbow Museum to bring five historic Blackfoot Shirts back to Blackfoot Territory, we were happy to play a part. This was another opportunity to strengthen our relationships with our neighbours the Kainai and establish new connections with the Piikani, Siksika, and the Amskapi Pikuni or American Blackfeet.

Dr. Robert Janes, in his recent book Museums in a Troubled World; Renewal, Irrelevance or Collapse, writes about museums and their relevance to their community. What he calls, “social engagement for museums” he compares to the “concept of the biosphere, where the diversity of life is the key to ecological health.” He suggests “social relevance can be as diverse as the communities which spawned the museums.” He proposes that museums become, “fundamental agents in advancing the collective good.”

Gail Lord, co-founder of Lord Cultural Resources, talks of museums as an “idea of community in which citizens enjoy equal opportunity to participate in public life and culture,” Janes pushes her premise further insisting that museums “assist in creating the idea of community that will enable citizen participation” and by doing so, museums become an essential service fully integrated in the community they serve. The Blackfoot Shirts project under the guidance of the Pitt Rivers staff, allowed the Galt Museum to take another vital step in the direction of inclusiveness and relevance in its diverse community.

As the Galt’s representative, I travelled with Dr. Peers and Dr. Alison Brown to meet with people from the four Blackfoot communities. We also held meetings at the Galt to which members from all four Reserves were invited to discuss the project, the Galt exhibit and associated programs. This allowed me to meet Blackfoot people who were Elders, spiritual leaders, educators and artists and to begin to learn of the complexities and nuances of the Blackfoot culture – a critical understanding for the success of the exhibit and programs at the Galt.

During the planning for the Shirts exhibit at the Galt, we invited Blackfoot advisors from all four communities to guide us. These conversations directed us to potential sponsors, guided the development and realization of programs, and expanded the exhibit to include artifacts and information complementary to the Blackfoot Shirts. The Blood Tribe Economic Development Officer introduced us to TransCanada, an oil pipeline company currently working on the Reserve and the company provided welcome funds to support the exhibit.

We expanded the exhibition to include elements that some of our advisors felt were important and elements the Galt felt were important. Our advisors asked that we add ceremonial clothing worn by other members of the tribes. They felt it was important to show that everyone in the family dressed in beautifully decorated clothing for special occasions. We were able to borrow a woman’s dress and child’s dress from the museum located at Fort Macleod, just half an hour drive west of Lethbridge. We also brought in a woman’s dress from the provincial Royal Alberta Museum, but we learned that Blackfoot people held beliefs that the dress was inappropriately obtained by a 19th century fur trader. The Galt listened to the Blackfoot people’s concerns and that dress was not exhibited.

In southern Alberta, the trade most non-natives are familiar with is the illegal whiskey/buffalo hide trade that took place in the river valley near Lethbridge during the late 1860s and early 1870s. This trade inundated the Blackfoot tribes with whiskey and all that is negative surrounding intense alcohol consumption. Museum staff felt it was important to tell the story of the earlier beaver fur trade where the Blackfoot people were equal partners if not those in control of the trade. We exhibited trade items that, unlike whiskey, added to the economy and family life of the Blackfoot people.

The other component the Galt introduced was again for the non-native visitor. We wanted to help them recognize the significance of the five men’s shirts in terms they could relate to so we included some modern clothingFrank Weasel Head told us the thoughts he shared with young people on his Reserve. He wanted the youngsters to understand that the five historic shirts had been earned by their owners due to their prowess as hunters and warriors. The shirts signified status and respect. What he encourages students to think about today is that they too can earn the right to wear modern clothing that proves a high level of status. They can remain in school and earn the right to wear a university convocation gown, a doctor’s white coat, or a sports team jersey and be contributing members of their community. In a small alcove adjacent to the main gallery holding the Blackfoot shirts we displayed just such clothing.

Today, many people of Lethbridge only know Blackfoot people through the negative stories carried by print, radio and television news outlets about aboriginal people who are homeless or who have been charged with theft and family abuse. Blackfoot Shirts garnered extensive coverage on the shirts and stories of many positive things happening in the Blackfoot community. It was an important lesson for the media to learn - that there is more to the Blackfoot people than negativity and homelessness.

The Galt provided Cultural Awareness training facilitated by Kiitokii, a Blackfoot advisor and Blanche Bruisedhead, the Galt’s Blackfoot Interpreter. They guided the Galt staff and volunteers into a new realm of understanding of the Blackfoot culture, creating a new respect for the Blackfoot people, their beliefs, and their heritage. They, in turn, passed on this awareness to non-native visitors. We heard from many Blackfoot people that we must get to know them by participating in Blackfoot activities. And so we have, we attended Pow Wow, Sun Dance, blessing circles, book readings and conferences.

The Blackfoot Project touched every aspect of our museum programming.

While the exhibition and workshops focused mainly on the tangible nature of the shirts, the workshops included many intangibles such as sewing, design, stories, prayers. The programs developed and implemented in partnership with Blackfoot people also focused on intangibles. The Grand Opening and Community Daywas attended by the Mayor, provincial politician, Canadian Senator, Blanche and her grandchildren, Narcisse Blood, and of course, Laura, Heather and Alison celebrated Blackfoot culture. There were dancers including a young hoop dancer by a young drummerand a performance of a modern Blackfoot dance by Miss Blackfoot Canada Simone Smith and Andrea True Joy FoxCarol Murray from Blackfeet College gave us permission to show herDVD telling the story of the American Fur Trade along the Missouri River from the Blackfeet perspective.

.

The Galt presented a full slate of family and adult programming, school programs and bus tours for people of all ages throughout the run of the exhibit. Most were developed and facilitated byand with aboriginal artists and teachers. A play calledNapi Storiesentertained the audience with Blackfoot stories and humour and was the stimulus for a family puppet making program Mari King travelled all the way from Browning, Montana and taught people about the travois as they made models of them.

Curriculum based programs around the Blackfoot theme were presented byBlanche Bruisedhead, Galt’s 9 year veteran Blackfoot Interpreter. As knowledge of the Shirts visit spread through the four Blackfoot communities, the Galt became a conduit between educators and the Blackfoot Shirts website where teachers accessed extensive information about the shirtsand added their lesson plans for all to use.

Galt Bus tours took people to Kainai DaysPow Wow – a day trip planned with Economic Development from the Blood Tribe and to Writing on Stone Provincial Park (a sacred place where ancient aboriginal pictographs are interpreted by Blackfoot people).

Through the exhibit and programs the Galt was able to feature the skills and talents of Blackfoot people from the past and those existing in our community today. Our intent was to entertain and educate people from the community and to validate the stories and skills of Blackfoot people.

The Galt hosted two meals with Blackfoot people. One included academics from the University of Lethbridge and Red Crow College, museum professionals from Pitt Rivers, Glenbow, Galt and from other museums across southwestern Alberta where we discussed the importance of this project. The other was a free hamburger lunch hosted onNational Aboriginal Day with partners from the Lethbridge Aboriginal Council and featured the Opening of a garden art work created by local aboriginal artist Doreen Williams-Freeman.

Because of the presence of the Blackfoot shirts, Blackfoot people held two ancient and highly significant ceremonies. We were very honored that these ceremonies were held at the Galt Museum.

The Blackfoot Shirts exhibit stimulated other activities beyond the Galt Museum. The Fort Macleod International Festival commissioned British composer Benjamin Ellin to write “Siksika”, a symphony reflecting on the Blackfoot people. The Galt hosted the World Premiere and “Siksika” has recently being performed in Greenwich and London. It was beautiful piece of music but I found it disappointing that the composer never met a Blackfoot person and had never visited Blackfoot territory until this Premiere. It was an opportunity lost.

No major project like the Blackfoot Shirts is without its challenges. It was an interesting juggle to find the right space for the workshops; one that would work for the museum and the participants. Our Archivist kindly gave up the Archives Reading Room to this project and Archives visitors were redirected to a temporary space. The next thing to consider was the burning of sweet grass as an important part of prayers and blessings. Thankfully, we had no alarms going off but we did need to warn one of our staff members when sweet grass was being used as she suffers from asthma. We found the smell of the sweet grass was picked up by our ventilation system and spread through the building. When visitors noticed we were able to explain about the burning of sweet grass as a part of the Blackfoot workshops and ceremony.

We had no trouble finding volunteers to help with the workshops. They werenon-natives who were given the opportunity to unobtrusively observe the ceremonies and the interaction between Blackfoot people and the shirts. Volunteers were asked to monitor access to the Reading Room to ensure privacy for the workshops and they also served coffee, tea and cookies afterward. Many treated this as a learning opportunity and, as one volunteer noted it was incredible to see “the joy and awe” that the Blackfoot people expressed in the shirts’ presence. Another found “the effect on the youth was dramatic [their] shining eyes [were] full of pride.” Volunteers Barb and Lloyd Cavers

There are Blackfoot people who feel the right people were not contacted and invited to participate and act as advisers. In several cases, it is the people who still create and sew that others feel were missed. This concern has been raised often and the Galt must address it so it doesn’t become a lingering problem. We know we can never be everything for everyone but when an individual expresses this concern we try to find out why. We gain valuable information about other Blackfoot people who have specific knowledge and skills. We hope, in the future, we will be able to call on them as cultural mentors, program facilitators, and for assistance with our Collections.

We learned that inviting Blackfoot people to events at the Galt requires a different form of communication and often that means a personal phone call. A mail out doesn’t always work because some people visit their mail boxes sporadically. Email is not very often an alternative because many homes on the Reserves do not have a computer and internet services.

Many First Nations people felt they should be allowed to visit without charge but financially the Galt was not in a position to accommodate that request. We tried unsuccessfully to find a sponsor to cover those costs. In the long run, we had few concerns voiced at the admission desk but we wonder if it did deter others from coming to the Galt to see the exhibition.

Repatriation was a topic of conversation and both non-native and natives were informed and concerned that the shirts were not staying in Canada. We explained that this project was about repatriating knowledge – again this comment came from Blackfoot people.

The relationship building and the planning and implementation of the exhibits and programs took a great deal of staff time.This was not unexpected, nor unwelcomed. Relationship building is critical to being an inclusive museum which is one of the major highlights of our Strategic Plan and staff understands the need to invest substantial amounts of time and effort into making this a success.

Despite these challenges the staff at the Galt has seen great improvement in the relationships we have with many Blackfoot people and organizations. The Galt’s profile in the Blackfoot community was raised during the workshops and exhibits where we had more aboriginal people participating and visiting the museum than ever before. We are now experiencing more interaction with Blackfoot people from Red Crow College, the Lethbridge Aboriginal Council, regional Blackfoot Reserves and Sites, such as Blackfoot Crossing Historic Park. Staff are recognized and acknowledged when we attend Blackfoot events and even on the streets of Lethbridge. Recently, seven ladies of the Piegan Women’s Group asked to see beaded Blackfoot items in the Collection. They were looking for traditional beadwork patterns and in return we gained valuable information about some of the artifacts we showed them. Staff from the Galt and Glenbow met recently collaborated with the staff of Red Crow College to provide advice as they develop a new library, museum, and archives.

Staff from Blackfoot Crossing and the Galt have agreed to a collegial meeting to discuss all sorts of operational issues from museum standards for collections care, joint programming ventures and economic sustainability.

Partnerships and relationship building, critical pieces forthe Galt as it strives to become in Bob Janes words a “fundamental agent[s] in advancing the collective good,” have been created and expanded because of the Blackfoot Shirts project.

Discussion with both Blackfoot Crossing and Red Crow College to find funding for the Galt to host a Blackfoot intern in the Galt for a one to two year term to help he/she learn about many facets of the museum operation; including collections care, exhibit development, interpretation.

As I sum up my comments I would like to show you comments we received from visitors, native and non-native that clearly show that people did understand the underlying messages of the Blackfoot Shirts visit.

The Blackfoot Shirts project was a major initiative for the Galt Museum & Archives and these don’t come along every day but what we have learned through this process will help us with smaller in-house projects. It will: