May 8, 2020 ̶ Toronto ̶ Uncover/Recover, an award-winning multimedia project from the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), OCAD University, and the Province of Ontario, is now live online.
Celebrating Indigenous peoples’ creative legacy, past, present and future, the virtual exhibition represents a unique collaboration between the province, students in OCAD University’s Indigenous Visual Culture (INVC) Program and the ROM. Funding for the project was provided through Ontario’s Ministry of Indigenous Affairs (formerly the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation).
During the 2017/2018 academic year, nine undergraduate students in the INVC Special Topics course, “Uncover. Recover” collaborated with ROM curators and knowledge keepers, with support from faculty and four research assistants from OCAD University’s Digital Futures and Graduate Studies programs, to work on this project.
Each student in the Uncover/Recover course chose an object from the ROM’s Indigenous collections and archive, with the goal to research the history of the object, consider its probable role in contemporary culture had it not been placed in a museum, and speculate on its use in a future Indigenous society. With the guidance and support of OCAD University’s Indigenous faculty and visiting knowledge keepers, the students designed culturally sensitive multimedia responses to the objects they’d chosen, which have been compiled on the website, created by Indigenous media-arts collective Maaiingan Productions and hosted on the ROM’s website. Incorporating gaming, critical commentary, mapping, sound, visual art, graphic and digital design, the project also promotes a lively exchange of local, regional, contemporary and traditional stories through social media. A video documentary of the proejct can be seen here.
“Our goal in this endeavour was to expand conventional notions of 'conservation' by asserting our desire to re-awaken objects that have been held in the museum's vaults for generations to uncover and recover their original purposes and re-engage them in the work of Indigenous social reconstruction and restoration,” says project lead Bonnie Devine, Associate Professor Emerita and Founding Chair, Indigenous Visual Culture Program at OCAD University.
“Art and culture help define our identity and deepen our understanding of the world around us,” says Jennifer Czajkowski, ROM Deputy Director for Engagement. “With this innovative digital project, students have been inspired by the Museum’s in-depth Indigenous collections to create original works that explore deep questions about identity, objects, and the role of Museums. We are delighted to be part of this invaluable collaboration with the students in OCAD University’s Indigenous Visual Culture Program and grateful for the support of the Ministry which has made it possible.”
The Uncover/Recover project and the participating students were awarded a Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation in 2019. OCAD University believes that Indigenous knowledges and cultures are of fundamental importance to the future of Canada, both to Indigenous individuals and communities, and to Canadian society, at large. In 2008, OCAD U created the Indigenous Visual Culture Program, one of the first of its kind to be established at an art and design university and convened an Indigenous Education Council. The Council’s mandate, which includes national representation, is to recommend initiatives and share strategies that provide direction and guidance in the development of the program and supporting initiatives.
About OCAD University (OCAD U)
OCAD University (www.ocadu.ca) is Canada’s university of the imagination. Founded in 1876, the university is dedicated to art, design and digital media education, practice and research, and to knowledge and invention across a wide range of disciplines.
About the ROM
Opened in 1914, the Royal Ontario Museum showcases art, culture and nature from around the world and across the ages. Among the top 10 cultural institutions in North America, Canada’s largest and most comprehensive museum is home to a world-class collection of 13 million art objects and natural history specimens, featured in 40 gallery and exhibition spaces. As the country’s preeminent field research institute and an international leader in new and original findings, the ROM plays a vital role in advancing our understanding of the artistic, cultural and natural world. Combining its original heritage architecture with the contemporary Daniel Libeskind-designed Michael Lee-Chin Crystal, the ROM serves as a national landmark, and a dynamic cultural destination in the heart of Toronto for all to enjoy.
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