{"id":68875,"date":"2021-10-21T11:32:03","date_gmt":"2021-10-21T15:32:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/?p=68875"},"modified":"2021-10-27T13:27:40","modified_gmt":"2021-10-27T17:27:40","slug":"original-artwork-by-simon-brascoupe-and-mairi-brascoupe-presented-at-the-land-acknowledgement-ceremony-for-the-new-civic-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/healthy-tomorrows\/original-artwork-by-simon-brascoupe-and-mairi-brascoupe-presented-at-the-land-acknowledgement-ceremony-for-the-new-civic-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Original artwork by Simon Brascoup\u00e9 and Mairi Brascoup\u00e9 presented at the land acknowledgement ceremony for the new Civic development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Mairi Brascoup\u00e9 (left) and Simon Brascoup\u00e9 standing in front of the land acknowledgement sign that features their original artwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next time you\u2019re near the site of the new Civic Development where Champagne Ave. meets Carling, look for a large sign adorned with four brightly-coloured silhouettes of medicinal plants. The artwork is by world-renowned Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg artist Simon Brascoup\u00e9 and his daughter, Mairi Brascoup\u00e9,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cThe series Algonquin Ancestral Medicinal Knowledge honours Algonquin knowledge of medicinal plants passed down through the generations from our ancestors,\u201d explained Simon. \u201cThe medicinal plant images are inspired by ancient Algonquin birchbark cut outs used as templates for decorating birchbark baskets and in museum collections around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This print series was created using Risograph printing technique which perfectly reproduces the texture of printing on birchbark paper. The Risograph is a unique technology from Japan that combines the vibrant colours of silkscreen with efficiency, affordability and low-energy usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of a momentous occasion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The artwork was presented during a ceremony at the site of the new Civic development to mark Canada\u2019s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, and to honour the land and respectfully offer thanks for the contributions, culture and traditional knowledge of all Indigenous Peoples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIndigenous patients who come to this new hospital \u2013 and indeed any patient who comes to any one of TOH\u2019s campuses \u2013 should feel they are in a space where they will be respected, where their values and beliefs are at the core of their treatment and healing, and where they are treated with dignity and compassion,\u201d said Katherine Cotton, Chair of The Ottawa Hospital\u2019s Board of Governors.  \u201cIt is our collective responsibility to ensure that this is a reality for every patient every time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As well as serving patients from Eastern Ontario, the hospital is the tertiary referral centre for patients from Nunavut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"From
Simon and Mairi present their original during a ceremony at the site of the new Civic development to mark Canada\u2019s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, and to honour the land and respectfully offer thanks for the contributions, culture and traditional knowledge of all Indigenous Peoples.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For Simon, the moment also had a deeply personal significance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou think back three generations\u2014parents, grandparents, great-grandparents\u2014and then you think forward\u2014children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren\u2014and the land acknowledgement brings that home to me. We were standing on Algonquin territory and everywhere in this territory my ancestors have walked,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contributing to culturally safe spaces<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Simon and Mairi authorized use of this artwork to the hospital in part because they believe it will help create a culturally safe space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne way to make a culturally-safe space for Indigenous peoples is to include symbols of Indigenous culture,\u201d said Simon. \u201cSo when people come in they recognize their art from their community, and that helps contribute to the safe space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art as identity, family, connection <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In addition to helping to create a culturally safe public space, Simon reflects on how creating art has been a lifelong, deeply personal affair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSince I was a very young child, I knew I was an artist, so art is part of me.\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s my responsibility to express myself through art because it\u2019s part of my own identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s an identity that he shares with his children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mairi
Mairi (left) believes that creating art is a way to share traditional and artistic knowledge across generations.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s funny,\u201d he said.  \u201cI\u2019m surprised that a lot of my children are artists and I shouldn\u2019t be.  It\u2019s a joyous thing. It warns my heart.  It\u2019s an expression of love that we have for each other, and when we are doing art, we are doing this together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that togetherness is equally important to Mairi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe always talk about intergenerational trauma, but there\u2019s also intergenerational knowledge sharing,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd through the process of our work, we try to share with each other, both the traditional knowledge and artistic knowledge, and that\u2019s what is encompassed in this work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So whenever you see those silhouettes of four medicinal plants at the construction site or in the new campus when it opens in 2028, know that it\u2019s the product of love between a father and daughter, a symbol of inclusion and a colourful connection to ancestors past, present and future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Learn the public and private story behind the series of four prints recently presented at the site of the new Civic development. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":68876,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[177,418],"class_list":["post-68875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-healthy-tomorrows","tag-community-engagement","tag-new-campus-development"],"acf":[],"wps_subtitle":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68875\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}