Photo:
By Lucas-Matthew Marsh
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Iori:wase
On Monday, McGill Libraries is unveiling a new photography exhibition highlighting Mohawk ironworkers and their often-underrepresented role in history.
Michelle MacLeod, curator of the McGill Visual Arts Collection at McGill Libraries, told Iorì:wase the project came out of a New York-themed exhibition by the McGill Faculty of Law, dedicated to honouring McGill alumni working in New York City.
“I knew I wanted to honour the Kanienʼkehá:ka ironworkers,” MacLeod said.
The exhibition will feature the work of the American photographer David Grant Noble who documented Mohawk ironworkers in New York City during the 1970s.
“We ended up purchasing four photographs that he took of Kahnawake ironworkers, and after I got four, he donated two more,” MacLeod said. “He offered to donate the rest of the photographs that he had… so he donated an additional 35 photographs.”
The project is a collaboration between the McGill Libraries, the McGill Visual Arts Collection and the Office of Indigenous Initiatives (OII) at McGill University.
According to Brittany Janvier, Director of Indigenous Initiatives at McGill, the OII worked with McGill Libraries to incorporate Indigenous perspectives into the exhibition.
“We wanted to share perspectives about the ironworking trade in general and, because we have these beautiful photographs, make those connections,” Janvier said.
To support that effort, Janvier reached out to Thomas Deer, Historical and Cultural Liaison at the Kanien’kehá:ka Onkwawén:na Raotitióhkwa Language and Cultural Center, to help coordinate the exhibition’s opening event.
“It’s going to be more than just an exhibition,” MacLeod said. “It’s an interactive experience with stories, perspectives and a celebration of the craft.”
Kahnawake ironworkers Wahiakeron George Gilbert and Jax Robertson will attend the exhibition’s opening on March 23 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
“We wanted George’s voice, right from the 1970s, but we also wanted a voice from today,” Janvier said.
The exhibition will be displayed on the first floor of the McLennan Library, and the debut will take place at the on the fourth floor near the Rare Books and Special Collections.
The exhibition will run until the end of May. After that, MacLeod said there are plans to display the photographs in another location on campus, if there is funding available for frames and display cases.
“The images are very striking and beautifully composed,” MacLeod said. “That’s why we’re so proud to have them on offer to the community.”
Correction: In a previous version of this story, the exhibition was stated to take place at the same location as its debut panel. The exhibition will be housed on the first floor of the McLennan Library Building.