WAG Inuit Art Centre Visible Vault Goes Digital thanks to Canada Council

Press Release

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Treaty 1 Territory, June 29 2020: The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) is excited to announce that the highly-anticipated Inuit Art Centre will feature an innovative, interactive digital platform connected to its Visible Vault, made possible with support from the Canada Council for the Arts. The new digital platform will enable people from around the globe to access thousands of carvings from the world’s largest public collection of contemporary Inuit art, and the stories behind these works.

As part of the project, the WAG invites all aspiring Inuit videographers to apply by July 17, 2020 to create short videos amplifying the voices of Inuit.

About the Visible Vault Digital Platform:

• A major attraction of the Inuit Art Centre, opening near the end of this year, the three-storey glass vault will showcase more than 7,500 stone carvings from the WAG collection and the Government of Nunavut’s Fine Arts Collection, held on long-term loan at the WAG, for a unique, immersive art-viewing experience.
• The Visible Vault is the first of its kind in North America and the world’s largest for Inuit art. The carvings will be presented according to geographic region and by artistic community.
• In 2019, the Canada Council for the Arts awarded the WAG $493,125 from its Digital Strategy Fund for an online platform to enrich the Visible Vault with Inuit-led, multimedia journeys through storytelling and interpretive materials.
• Designed for visitors of every age, new technology interfaces will include interactive maps, photographs, animations, and audio/video clips that provide greater depth, sparking experiences ranging from close contemplation to active making.
• Accessible on-site and online, the educational platform will be available for visitors, students, artists and their families, researchers, and the global public at large.
• The WAG is working with youth and elders throughout Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit regions in Canada, and beyond. The digital platform will promote Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, Inuit traditional knowledge.
• A conservation studio at the heart of the Visible Vault will give visitors a behind-the-scenes look at conservators and other specialists working with the collection.
• This summer, local Inuk Maxine Anguk joins the WAG team as Visible Vault Digital Platform Project Manager.
• Winnipeg-based, award-winning digital media firm Tactica Interactive is partnering on the project and building the platform.

Call for Applications from Aspiring Inuit Videographers

• The Visible Vault’s digital platform will include short videos, sound recordings and photographs, sharing stories related to the art on display. The platform will highlight Inuit artists, cultures, histories, lives and lands, and will provide a variety of intergenerational perspectives from Inuit artists, elders, knowledge keepers, storytellers, youth, and other community members.
• The WAG invites all aspiring or entry-level Inuit videographers/multimedia specialists to apply to create one or more short (3-5 minute) videos. Minimum honorarium for each video is $500. The application deadline is July 17, 2020.
• The call for applications is available in English at wag.ca, and is currently being translated into Inuktitut. Any questions may be directed to manguk@wag.ca or 204.789.1342/204.789.0516.

About the WAG Inuit Art Centre:

• Opening in the coming months, the WAG Inuit Art Centre is the first art museum of its kind dedicated to the art and culture of Inuit from Canada and beyond.
• The Centre will take art from object to full sensory experience, complementing and augmenting the cutting-edge art education that the WAG delivers today.
• The new 40,000-square-foot-building designed by Michael Maltzan Architecture with Cibinel Architecture will connect to the WAG on all four levels, providing stunning exhibition, learning and event spaces; a revamped shop; plus a new café on the main level in partnership with Sparrow Hotels.
• The central feature is a Visible Vault, showcasing thousands of carvings. The public is invited to help build Canada’s Inuit Art Centre by purchasing a shelf on the Visible Vault (details at inuit.wag.ca).

Quotes:

“We are tremendously grateful to the Canada Council for the Arts for bringing this innovative project to life. The WAG Inuit Art Centre will celebrate Inuit artists and perspectives, and the launch of this digital platform will amplify these voices like never before. Art is a Voice that breaks down barriers and brings people together, and thanks to Canada Council, audiences across the country and around the world will be that much closer to this amazing art form and all that it stands for.”
—Dr. Stephen Borys, Director & CEO, Winnipeg Art Gallery

“I am excited to see the development of work by Inuit filmmakers to activate the new interactive digital platform. These stories, told through many voices, will add a whole different level of connection to the WAG’s Inuit art collection, and will be shared with those worldwide.”
—Jocelyn Piirainen, Assistant Curator of Inuit Art, Winnipeg Art Gallery

“I look forward to leading this exciting project and am interested in involving many members of the Inuit community to take part in the research and storytelling around the works of art that will be on display in the new Visible Vault – allowing authentic Inuit voices to tell the stories and share traditional knowledge from their communities.”
—Maxine Anguk, Visible Vault Digital Platform Project Manager, Winnipeg Art Gallery

Associated Links

WAG Inuit Art Centre
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Canada Council for the Arts

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For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact:

Amy Rebecca Harrison
Engagement Supervisor
Winnipeg Art Gallery
204.789.1347
aharrison@wag.ca

Amber O’Reilly
Engagement Officer
Winnipeg Art Gallery
204.789.1295
PublicRelations@wag.ca

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