KC Adams: Seven Generations

November 21, 2024 - February 14, 2025
Opening reception: Thursday, November 21, 4:00 - 6:30 pm

Gallery 1C03, the campus art gallery of The University of Winnipeg, is pleased to present Seven Generations, an exhibition by Ininew-Anishinaabe-British relational maker KC Adams.

Seven Generations brings together Adams’ digital photo-portrait series We Are Still Here with ancestor regalia from the Manitoba Museum and a newly commissioned short film. Together, these works exemplify Indigenous resilience and demonstrate the vitality of inter-generational matrilineal knowledge and creative making.

In response to the discovery of unmarked graves at Kamloops Residential School in 2021, Adams took to social media, inviting family and friends to bring their thriving school-age children to meet her at the Forks for a photo session. Her portraits of Indigenous youth are composed in seven layers to represent the seven generations teachings. She notes: “Each generation is responsible for the care and well-being of those generations coming after them. The work done today to heal ourselves will create a healing path for generations to come.” Careful scans of historical beadwork and quillwork from the Manitoba Museum’s HBC collection surround the youth in loving gestures that point to Indigenous ancestral protection and ways of knowing. These ancestor creations will also be shown in the gallery. For her new short film, Relational Making, Adams collaborates with young moms and their children who are regalia makers and powwow dancers from Fisher River Cree Nation to honour the beauty and teachings embedded in this evolving tradition.

Programming planned in conjunction with Seven Generations echoes Adams’ work as an Indigenous woman working in relation to and with community. The exhibition opens on November 21 with a special reception starting at 4:00 pm with special guest dancers from Fisher River Cree Nation and a drum group. On November 28, the public is invited to visit campus to shop at the University of Winnipeg’s first-ever Indigenous Makers Market, featuring the work of 20 makers. The new year will bring a panel discussion and workshop. The exhibition will also include an interpretive text by artist, curator and writer Becca Taylor, also a member of Fisher River Cree Nation.

ABOUT KC ADAMS

Relational maker KC Adams, or Flying Overhead Eagle Woman, is of Ininew, Anishinaabe and British heritage. She is a registered member of Fisher River Cree Nation living on Treaty One Territory in Winnipeg. Adams has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Concordia University and a Master of Arts degree in Cultural Studies (Curatorial Practices) from the University of Winnipeg where she graduated with Highest Distinction. As a relational maker, she creates work that embeds Indigenous knowledge systems. She is also an educator, activist, community member and mentor. KC has had numerous solo and group exhibitions and residencies across Canada and internationally and she has presented her work in three biennales, including the PHOTOQUAI: Biennale des images du monde in Paris, France. Twenty pieces from her Cyborg Hybrid photo series which address racism toward people of mixed Indigenous/European ancestry are in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Canada, and her Birch Bark Ltd sculptural installation is held in the collection of the Canadian Consulate of Australia. Adams has received several awards for her work, including the Winnipeg Arts Council’s Making A Mark Award, Canada's Senate 150 medal, the University of Saskatchewan's Ohpinamake Prize for Indigenous Artists, and a Quill & Quire 2019 Book of the Year Award for Perception: A Photo Series, a project combatting anti-Indigenous racism. KC was the scenic designer for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s 2019 production Going Home Star: Truth and Reconciliation. Her recent public art commissions at The Forks and Red River Polytech honour Indigenous ways of knowing and inspire Winnipeggers to pursue reconciliation. Her photo-portrait series of Indigenous youth, entitled We Are Still Here was first presented as a virtual exhibition with the Portrait Gallery of Canada.

RESOURCES
Read the exhibition brochure, featuring an essay by Becca Taylor.

Listen to the November 14, 2024 interview with KC Adams and Margaret Firlotte about the exhibition and the Indigenous Makers Market.

Coming soon - a Library Resource guide to further expand your understanding of this exhibition.

EXHIBITION HOURS
Monday - Friday between 12:00 and 4:00 pm from November 21, 2024 until February 14, 2025. Open until 6:30 pm on November 21 and until 8:00 pm on November 28. Closed from December 23, 2024 until January 3, 2025.

AFFILIATED EVENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WINNIPEG
Indigenous Makers Market: Thursday, November 28, 2024, 12:00 – 8:00 pm
Panel Discussion: Monday, January 13, 2025 at 4:00 pm
Workshop: TBA

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Gallery 1C03 is located on Treaty One Territory, heartland of the Red River Métis, and ancestral lands of the Anishinaabe, Ininew, Anishininew, Dakota Oyate, and Denesuline. We acknowledge that our water is sourced from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation.

Gallery 1C03 acknowledges financial assistance provided by the Manitoba Arts Council. We are also grateful for the support of the University of Winnipeg’s Office of Indigenous Engagement, Indigenous Student Services Centre, Indigenous Students Association, and the Curatorial Practices graduate program.