City of Ottawa Recreation - Celebrating Indigenous culture

 

Immerse yourself in Indigenous culture by visiting an exhibit, a show or workshop

She Carries a Song   An intimate and powerful evening of folk music, story-telling, and spirit from three celebrated Indigenous voices on Wednesday, October 14 at Shenkman Arts Centre. Celeigh Cardinal (Cree), Mimi O’Bonsawin (Abenaki), and Lacey Hill (Oneida/Mohawk) — come together in this intimate and moving performance that weaves voice, story, and song into a shared circle of strength.

Cultivating Community: Agriculture Rooted in Ottawa’s History  Take a trip to the Barbara Ann Scott Gallery to discover the rich agricultural heritage of Ottawa through stories of resilience, innovation, and connection. Cultivating Community explores how farming has shaped—and been shaped by—both Indigenous and settler communities. From traditional practices to modern urban agriculture, this exhibit highlights the power of community in cultivating the land and a shared future. This exhibition runs until Friday, November 13, 2026. Note: Exhibition closed on September 30.

Exhibition: Decolonize This Place Decolonize This Place is currently exhibited at Shenkman Arts Centre until Friday, November 13, 2026. This exhibit brings together Indigenous artists from Kitigan Zibi and Timiskaming First Nations to explore and challenge the boundaries between what Western institutions have historically categorized as fine arts and crafts. Through a decolonial lens, the exhibition questions hierarchies that have often separated Indigenous cultural and artistic practices from dominant definitions of contemporary art. Featuring beadwork, moccasins, digital illustration, painting, sculpture, traditional tools, and other forms of artistic expression, the exhibition presents these practices alongside one another without imposing colonial distinctions of value or artistic legitimacy. Instead, the works highlight the relationships between art, culture, identity, land, knowledge, and community.   The exhibition recognizes Indigenous artistic practices as living and evolving forms of expression. Traditional knowledge and techniques exist in conversation with contemporary materials, experiences, and approaches, demonstrating cultural continuity while resisting expectations of what Indigenous art should look like. By centering the voices and practices of Indigenous artists, Decolonize This Place seeks to reclaim institutional space for Indigenous expression and resurgence. The exhibition invites audiences to reconsider established artistic categories and engage with art as a space for cultural revitalization, dialogue, self-determination, and cross-cultural understanding. Note: Exhibition closed on September 30.  Image: Jay Odjick

Beading Workshop with Stephanie Tenasco Join Algonquin beadwork artist and language advocate Stephanie Tenasco for a hands-on introduction to the art of beading on Saturday, November 14. Beyond learning a new skill, this workshop offers an opportunity to deepen participants’ understanding and appreciation of beadwork as a living Indigenous art practice, connecting creativity, culture, knowledge, and community.