By Danielle Dufour
MBC Freelance Coorispondent
Gabriel Dumont Institute held a Metis beading workshop this past Saturday in Regina taught by Amy Briley, co-author of Wapikwaniy—A Beginner’s Guide to Metis Floral Beadwork.
“For me, beading is a cultural practice that connects me to my history and identity as a Metis woman,” said Briley. “When I teach beading, I share cultural teachings and knowledge that I’ve received from Knowledge Keepers, mentors, and my Metis community, and I’m very mindful about where and how I share these teachings.”
Briley noted that to protect the sacredness of those teachings, the teachings around the protocols and practices are only shared within the community.
Alyssa Renner, a teacher, attended the beading workshop.
Renner had been working as a teacher on the Cowessess First Nation and had done some beading there for the graduates. “It just sparked love that I’d like to continue learning about,” said Renner.
“A couple of my kids didn’t have family to do beading for them, specifically with grad caps, embellishments on sashes, and things, and because they were my kids and I had spent so much time with them, I wanted to learn for them and do it for them,” said Renner.
Some of the kids that Renner was teaching and mentoring throughout their senior year shared with her that their family homes were complicated and that they felt comfort in coming to school and spending time in her classroom.
“I felt like I was their adult, their safe place, or one of them,” said Renner. “I really wanted to continue that and make them feel like their chapter in high school had ended in a good way, in a way that was connected to their culture, even if it wasn’t something that I shared explicitly with them.”
The workshop taught how to bead a flower with petals.
“It’s great, and I’m learning things that I didn’t learn when I was teaching myself,” said Renner about the class. “I am very grateful for the experience.”
Renner plans to use her newly found beading skills to connect with her culture.
“I only recently found out that I was Métis over the last year,” said Renner. “It’s very new to me, so having that kind of makes its way into my life; I want to share it as well.”
It was only on her deathbed that her grandmother shared about their Metis heritage that she had long kept to herself.
“Finding opportunities like through the Gabriel Dumont Institute, it’s really helpful for me to do something small at first, to maybe lead into something more profound as I learn about my family and learn about my culture,” said Renner.
The Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) is making culture accessible to the community through their partnership with SaskCulture.
For more information about events and workshops offered at GDI, visit: https://gdins.org/about/events