A new exhibition at Montreal’s McCord Stewart Museum is bringing together Indigenous beadwork, family history and objects from the museum’s collection in a project by multidisciplinary visual artist Carrie Allison.
Reconnecting with family history
Carrie Allison: askōhtēskanohwē runs from Sept. 30, 2026, to Feb. 28, 2027, and is part of the eighth edition of the Biennale d’art contemporain autochtone (BACA).
The exhibition was developed through the museum’s Artist-in-Residence program, which gives artists an opportunity to engage with its collection and develop new work through that process.
Allison’s project draws on her family history and on beadwork in the museum’s Indigenous Cultures collection from her family’s home region in northwest Alberta.
She says spending time with the collection was an important part of developing the exhibition.
“I’ve always loved museum spaces, but they aren’t always accessible. This program made it accessible for me to spend time with, view and really visit with these pieces. And I think that that is the most valuable thing that you can give a community, give a person, give an artist as well.
“A lot of these pieces are made by our ancestors and our communities, and we can learn so much just by visiting with them. But obviously, sometimes that can be hard when you don’t live in the area or you’re not welcome into the space in a way that feels good.”
Allison says askōhtēskanohwē brings together pieces from the Godet collection at the McCord as well as work from a new series she has been developing over the past few years.
The project reinterprets older pieces while exploring kin relationships and the connections that shaped the beading style of northwest Alberta.
“I think that with our material cultures, they’ve always continued. And that’s what I’m hoping that people see is the continuation of beadwork and our material culture and stories,” said Allison.
“I’m just really happy that I got to do this, and I’m excited for everyone to see it,” she added.
Connecting traditions and land
Celina Yellowbird, curatorial assistant for Indigenous Cultures at the McCord Stewart Museum, says Allison’s connection to the land stood out during the selection process for the Artist-in-Residence program.
“Carrie’s art really spoke out to us and this connection to the land was beautiful,” she said.
Yellowbird says the project also created an opportunity to bring attention to the relationship between Indigenous traditions and the land.
“It’s so important that when we look at this collection, we bring out that kind of relationship between our traditions and the land.”
The exhibition brings together four new beadwork pieces by Allison and eight cultural belongings from the museum’s Indigenous Cultures collection.
Making space for families
The exhibition also includes BEADZ 2.0, an interactive installation made up of 25 giant foam beads and presented alongside a video work projection.
Children and families can handle the beads freely, using them to play, build or rest. The installation is intended to create a more inclusive space that encourages curiosity, movement and imagination.
“I think that this space is intentionally intergenerational, so kids and older people are honoured and welcomed,” said Allison.
Michael Patten, director general and president of the Biennale d’art contemporain autochtone, says programs that give Indigenous artists access to museum collections can create opportunities for new work and ideas.
“I think it’s really important because they allow access for Indigenous artists to come and see the collection, to work with the museum and to kind of come up with their own ideas and work on things for the future. I think it’s really important to share the culture with everyone.”
For Allison, the title askōhtēskanohwē evokes following the tracks of the past while opening a path for future generations. The title also carries ideas of gathering, knowledge transmission and storytelling.
Allison’s practice combines old and contemporary technologies and explores land, continuity, growth and healing, while reflecting on her nêhiýaw and Métis inheritances.
Yellowbird hopes visitors will also see Indigenous creativity and diversity through the exhibition.
“I really hope that people when they come in, they see Indigenous beauty and they see our multiple identities and the way that we’re artists, we’re artistic, there’s beauty in our culture,” she said.
Add CityNews Montreal as a trusted source on Google to see more local stories from us.
