Gikinoo’amaatowin - This Is All Learning

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Grounded in the understanding that learning is a relational process, Gikinoo’amaatowin* – This Is All Learning explores the many ways knowledge is carried through the artistic practices of Anishinaabe artists Jean Marshall and Nicole Richmond.

Coming from Northwestern Ontario, Marshall from Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (Big Trout Lake) in Treaty 9, and Richmond from Biiigtigong Nishnaabeg (Pic River) in Robinson-Superior Treaty territory, both artists root their practices in the relationships between land, memory and intergenerational knowledge. Exhibiting beadwork and jingle dresses, Gikinoo’amaatowin invites viewers to consider how community teaches us through sharing, movement, and making.

Taking its title from a reflection by Jean Marshall when speaking of her work, “this is all learning,”1 this exhibition reminds us that knowledge is not confined to classrooms or institutions. Learning happens while harvesting, sewing, beading, and dancing, through ancestral practices, and while being in relation with the land and each other.

Gikinoo’amaatowin – This Is All Learning explores methods of storytelling, healing and resistance found within Indigenous women’s artistry. The pieces in the exhibition present a continuation of cultural teachings that are grounded in place and community.

Nicole Richmond’s seven rainbow coloured jingle dresses came to her as a vision of seven women dancing together in synchronicity. The origin of the jingle dress is one of healing and prayer.2 In Anishinaabe culture, water is sacred and has healing qualities. When the dress is danced in and the jingles become animated, they resemble the sound of raindrops, bringing about healing to the community. Richmond’s work speaks to the deep connection she feels between Indigenous women and the healing power of the jingle dress dance.

Each dancer, moving in unison, becomes part of a larger rhythm embodying care, strength, and spiritual grounding. For Richmond, the rainbow hues symbolize diversity, and the spectrum of experiences held together through collective movement. She describes her work to be inspired by “mystical and supernatural connections, including to the star people”3 and draws from the Anishinaabe woodland tradition.

Beadwork designs are unique, reflecting the artist’s distinct community style, teachings and personal taste. Marshall’s body of work titled Gitigan, meaning garden in Anishinaabemowin*, speaks to her relationship with food and kin. Her circular felt pieces, which mirror her beadwork style, play with colour and feature native plants which reflect the importance of Indigenous food sovereignty.4 Marshall’s “Don’t Forget To Love Yourself” emphasise self-care, a theme found throughout her beadwork and deeply embedded within her beading practice.5

Gikinoo’amaatowin – This Is All Learning locates inherent knowledge accessed via memory and relationality. Through beadwork and regalia, Marshall and Richmond honour practices passed down to them while shaping new pathways for future artists. These artists remind us that learning is a practice rooted in care and process that never ends.

CURATOR: TD Associate Curator, Albany Sutherland

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• Art Gallery of Burlington agb.life

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Art Gallery of Burlington

The Art Gallery of Burlington delivers thought-provoking exhibitions, learning opportunities, and public programs that spark meaningful connections for people to learn, see, think, and make. We activate our collection of contemporary Canadian ceramics and explore the intersection of contemporary art and craft.

The AGB commits to fostering a fair, diverse, and inclusive environment where everyone is respected and valued, regardless of their background. We do not discriminate based on sex, age, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation or identity, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, family status, or socioeconomic status. We embrace diverse life experiences and honour their value to our organization. We aim to set a positive example and promote best practices for equity, diversity, and inclusion in the not-for-profit sector.

The AGB is grateful to acknowledge that we are on Treaty Lands and Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and the ancestral territory of many Indigenous Nations, including the Anishinaabeg, Haudenosaunee, and Métis peoples.