First Nations First
Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau
Canada Dry? No, Canada Wet!
What better way to spend a rainy afternoon than visiting a museum? The Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau was unlike any museum I’d ever visited. And I have visited quite a few in my time, I can tell you.
For a start, the building itself is quite an eyeful. The Dynamic Duo had already spotted it from Parliament Hill the previous day, and immediately resolved to check it out. I was quite happy to tag along, especially as this involved crossing Ottawa River to Gatineau via Alexandra Bridge. And it was exciting to be able to walk into the neighbouring province! At this stage I’ve figured out how to tell when we’re in Québec and when we’re in Ontario: in Québec, French comes first on the bi-lingual road signs, in Ontario, English.
I was pleased to hear that the architect of the museum, Douglas Joseph Cardinal, is a local. And not only that, he is of indigenous origin. His design, which was built in 1989, certainly shows a feel for the natural surroundings, with its soft, natural curves blending in with those of the riverfront.
There is a great view of Parliament Hill from the museum terrace. This local lad totally lost his grip over it!
The main foyer, the Grand Hall, blew me away. Apart from the fact that it is a breathtaking space, it houses the world’s largest collection of totem poles! I had heard of totem poles, but I was not prepared for the scale of them. They are enormous! I can’t imagine how long it must have taken to carve them. And I have never seen so many huge carved wooden birds before. Now I know what it’s like to walk among giants!
And talking about large scale art, I was also mesmerised by this beautiful modern mural on the dome over the Haida Gwaii Salon. In fact, the whole museum is on such a large scale, that we spent the rest of the afternoon on the first floor, mainly in the exhibitions covering the history and diversity of indigenous peoples in Canada.
I mentioned road signs earlier. Now, this one beats them all! The various indigenous languages are quite amazing. They even make Irish look easy!
Anyone for tennis? Oh, apparently these are snowshoes. Sorry, I’m a bit out of my element here. Unlike the First Nations. It’s clear that the indigenous peoples were adept at coping with the elements. You’d think that with the harsh climate and conditions, especially in the far north, it would have taken the First Nations all their time and effort simply to survive. Everything they made, be it tipis, houses, clothing, shoes, weapons, tools, sledges or canoes, was extremely practical and efficient – but also intricately decorated. The artwork is incredible. I couldn’t get over how much time and skill they invested in these artefacts.
Take this baby carrier, for example. Isn’t it just beautiful? Not only that, it was apparently lined with moss to collect … spills, let’s say … the moss being naturally absorbent and easy to replace. Now that’s what I call being green – and way ahead of the times!
It is funny how often you see overlaps in traditional items. I thought that this drum was very reminiscent of the Irish bodhrán for example, and indeed, many of the canoes I saw on display were not unlike Irish currachs.
These carved wooden masks reminded me of the ones I had seen in the Museum of the Orient in Lisbon. The interesting thing about these ones, however, is that they open up to reveal a different face on the inside. Most ingenious, and very spooky!
I probably could have spent days in this museum, but I was happy to get at least a glimpse of the many faces of these fascinating and incredibly talented peoples.
