Unveiling Celebrates Indigenous Heritage
It has been more than three years in the making, but a new installation at the entrance to Waterwheel Park in Chemainus, named Shq’apthut (Gathering Place), will remind people of thousands of years of Coast Salish heritage in the region and ongoing efforts toward reconciliation between Indigenous peoples and other cultures living on the unceded territory of the Penelakut Tribe, Stz’uminus, Halalt, and Lyackson First Nations.
The official unveiling of the sculptural Coast Salish designs by Penelakut artist Maynard Johnny Jr. will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 7, at the Waterwheel Crescent entrance to the park.
The project was managed and funded by the Chemainus Festival of Murals Society (CFOMS) with financial, technical, and logistical support from the Municipality of North Cowichan, the Island Coastal Economic Trust, the Chemainus Valley Cultural Arts Society, the Penelakut Tribe, the Rotary Club of Chemainus, BC Marble Products Ltd., And the Cowichan Valley Regional District.
“This has been a community effort from start to unveiling,” CFOMS President Tom Andrews said. “It will stand as a reminder that we can work together, and must continue working together, to honour the original inhabitants of this region.”
Eight galvanized steel panels, coated on the inside with glass acrylic, enclose the metal structure that spans the pathway leading to Old Town Chemainus. The installation measures 3.5 metres high by 5.9 metres wide. One side panel depicts a heron, while the other features salmon. The two top panels illustrate eagles. The sculpture will be illuminated from within at night.
“This art installation is dedicated to the ancestors and people that have been here since time immemorial,” said Maynard Johnny Jr “There were once Indigenous villages in and around Chemainus.”
The female and male eagle (on the cross beam) signify peace and unity. We encounter uncertainty at times throughout the past and present, and although it can cause division and conflict, we can find a way to come together and celebrate our community and our cultures.
Components for the installation were manufactured at the Marcon Metalfab Inc. facility in Delta, BC and installed by the Municipality of North Cowichan. The total cost for design, fabrication, and installation is approximately $150,000.
Residents from the region are invited to attend the unveiling ceremony. “They will be amazed by the scale and power of this monumental work of art and the message it conveys to people walking through the heart of our community,” Andrews said.
The unveiling ceremony will include First Nations entertainment and activities.
For updates and more information, visit muraltown.com/gathering-place.
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