Across Lands & Waters CERC gathering

The Qiaqsutuq installation will be on view at Across Lands and Waters
Victoria may not immediately come to mind as the obvious location for an international gathering of 60 circumpolar and Pacific artists and curators, but that’s one of the advantages that comes with Dr Heather Igloliorte now calling UVic home.
As the Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Decolonial & Transformational Indigenous Art Practices, Igloliorte has held this prestigious eight-year, $8-million position in UVic’s Department of Visual Arts since November 2023 — and, out of 45 current CERC chair holders, remains the only artist/curator in a field dominated by hard sciences.
Running April 29-May 1, Across Lands and Waters will be the first major gathering of Igloliorte’s CERC network of mostly Indigenous artists, scholars, museum/gallery directors, curators, students and community members. Over three days, participants will gather for lively discussions, gallery visits, land-based activities and performances, sharing current research and projects while making plans for future collaborations. They’ll also engage with the public via Igloliorte’s new Taqsiqtuut Research-Creation Lab.
Noting that her attendees are coming from nearly every time zone in the world, Igloliorte feels Across Lands and Waters offers an unprecedented opportunity to connect in-person. Representing a wide variety of nations and cultures — including Inuk, Kanaka ‘Ōiwi (Native Hawaiian), Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw, Sami, Sāmoan/Persian/Cantonese, Sugpiaq, Ts’msyen and Zuni Pueblo — participants will be coming from as far afield as Norway, Greenland, Rankin Inlet, New Mexico and Honolulu.
“Victoria is nestled at the center of both the Pacific and the North, from the west coast of North America on up to Alaska, then across the Arctic and around the circumpolar world, but also over to Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand and Samoa,” says Igloliorte. “I have a large network of colleagues and artists I’ve been working with for a long time — partners who are working and thinking across Indigenous cultures and learning from each other in order to move towards this place of transformation and decolonization.”
While attending, Across Lands and Waters invited guests will engage in Pecha Kucha-style research presentations; an “On The Land” session focusing on the removal of invasive species and replanting of native plants; a site visit to the studio of UVic Impact Chair Carey Newman; a visit to Island Timber salvage operation, which provides timber to Indigenous artists; a tour of new Legacy Gallery exhibit, GEORGE CLUTESI: ḥašaḥʔap / ʔaapḥii / ʕc̓ik / ḥaaʔaksuqƛ / ʔiiḥmisʔap; plus performances and storytelling by Indigenous artists, with an opening from Chief David Knox at Mungo Martin House.
Public participation
Across Lands and Waters culminates in a free public event on Thursday, May 1, featuring panel sessions from 1-5pm (Phillip T Young Recital Hall, MacLaurin B-Wing) and a reception with art installations and interactive projects from 5-7pm (Visual Arts building). During this time, the public is invited to:
- engage with Carey Newman’s new Witness Blanket VR project
- explore Qiaqsutuq, a multimedia sculptural installation which offers an Inuit perspective on climate change, as told Greek Chorus-style from the perspectives of five gigantic Arctic animals or beings
- watch 3D Sami films via VR headsets
- participate in a group stop-motion short film project
- hear panels on “Sovereignty & the Arts”, “Institutional Practices”, “Resistance & Transformation” and “These Lands & Waters” (see UVic Calendar link for details)
- view the exhibition Continuum, showcasing work by past, present and future Indigenous students from UVic’s Visual Arts program (co-curated by Alexandra Nordstrom and Jasmine Sihra, Concordia University PhD students)
- enjoy a reception with live music and light refreshments.

Carey Newman’s Witness Blanket VR
About Heather Igloliorte
Canada’s first Inuk art historian to hold a doctoral degree, Igloliorte has developed a well-deserved reputation as an internationally renowned curator whose work has positioned circumpolar Indigenous arts and knowledge at the centre of global exhibition practices. In addition to her teaching duties, her other current projects include curating Newfoundland’s international Bonavista Biennale (August-Sept) and being on the jury for both the upcoming Salt Spring National Art Prize (Sept-Oct) and Yukon Art Prize (Oct).
As UVic’s only CERC, Igloliorte is focused on advancing reconciliation through the transformative power of art and innovative exhibition practices. “Indigenous people don’t necessarily have access to the same cutting-edge technologies that others do, just like they lack access to museums and galleries in the North,” she says. She is supporting a new generation of students, researchers, educators, curators and artists to drive change through artistic practice.
As such, her Taqsiqtuut Research Creation lab is focused on not only sharing practical digital skills but also the creation of exhibitions, the training and mentoring of students and youth, and the development of new policies and best practices for institutions that engage with Indigenous art and artists.

Heather Igloliorte