People, Power, & the Park

This exhibition reflects the many roles Allan Gardens has played over the past 125 years. It has been a village commons, a city park, a speaker’s corner, a community centre without walls. It has offered cooling shade in the summer, a storied greenhouse in the winter, a place to gather with others, or enjoy solace and solitude. Long before it was designated as private property, and then a city park, this was a place of great significance to Indigenous communities who have lived, gathered and held ceremonies here for millennia and continue to do so. The exhibition features installations from the four-day festival that took place in Allan Gardens from Sept 22 to 25, as well as original work from Indigenous Artist in Residence Michel Dumont.

The exhibit is now available for viewing at the TMU Library, 350 Victoria St., 2nd floor. 

Michel is a two-spirited Métis artist who enjoys breathing new life into discarded vintage tiles by making mosaic pieces. He is a self-taught artist and occasional teacher whose mediums include fibre arts, ceramics and unconventional materials for wearable art. Working with shattered mirrored tiles is symbolic of Michel’s daily dealings with a shattered back and decades of PTSD, driving him to turn these struggles into something beautiful. As a son of an Indian Day School survivor, Michel also aims to honour his culture through his work. Paul H. Cocker Gallery is grateful to have Michel’s voice be a part of this project.

Michel is represented by Paul Petro Contemporary Art, Toronto.