Content
Skip to Main ContentAccessibility Help
New Brunswick·Ann's Eye

See the art inspired by the Wabanaki creation story

The exhibit, 'It started with a thought,' is a reference to how all creation stories begin.

New Brunswick College of Craft and Design exhibit features work from Indigenous students, alumni and faculty

CBC News ·
A wooden carving of a face hangs on the wall.
This piece by Rob Johnston is made using butternut wood and tung oil. (Ann Paul/CBC)

The art may display a stillness, but Spasaqsit Possesom, also known as Ron Tremblay, said everything that went into the work is very much alive. 

That includes some of his own work, on display at the George Fry Gallery on Queen Street in Fredericton as part of an exhibit produced by Indigenous students, alumni and faculty from the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design.

The exhibit, 'It started with a thought,' is a reference to how all creation stories start with a thought, said artist Lisa-Maude Aubin-Bérubé.

"This is us making our own creation stories about our mediums," she said.

WATCH | Artist Lisa-Maude Aubin-Bérubé describes the Wabanaki exhibit, 'It started with a thought' 

Wabanaki artworks on display at Fredericton’s George Fry Gallery

2 years ago
Duration 2:25
‘This is us making our own creation stories’: Students at New Brunswick College of Craft and Design showcase their work.

According to the exhibition's website, Wabanaki oral tradition holds that the world was created with a single thought from a mystical being.

The exhibit, on display until March 28, features both the traditional and the modern, such as painting, photography, quillwork, wood carving, beadwork and digital illustration. 

Artists used everyday objects and materials from nature, such ash and sweetgrass, to create their pieces.

Scroll through CBC contributor Ann Paul's photos and watch CBC videojournalist Aniekan Etuhube's video above to learn more about the art.

A woman with long, brown hair wearing a black sweater stands next to an illustration of a woman making a basket.
Emma Hassencahl-Perley, who’s also the exhibit curator, created this digital illustration called Breadwinner for the exhibition. (Ann Paul/CBC)
A wooden paddle with painted blue flowers on it rests on a pile of pine branches.
The George Fry Gallery, located at 408 Queen Street, is open Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Ann Paul/CBC)
Eyewear carved from wood rests on white fabric.
Rob Johnston made this piece, called Annguak (Present), using butternut, tung oil, leather, seal skin and glass beads. (Ann Paul/CBC)
A long, white strip of fabric with an embroidered deer and deer tracks rests on a deer antler.
This piece by Lisa-Maude Aubin-Bérubé, called Nutaptuwet, is about tracking a deer. It’s a Wampum using materials sinew, deer antler and leather. (Ann Paul/CBC)
A woman with long black hair stands next to a piece of art made using birch bark.
Natasha Sacobie used porcupine quills and birch bark to create this piece called Strength in Sadness. (Ann Paul/CBC)
Blue beadwork with green leaves on it sits on the left. A red hat with blue trim is on the right.
The peaked cap on the right is called "Mootiss." Artist Judie Acquin began this project, inspired by traditional Wolastoqey headwear, seven years ago. The curved designs represent the four generations of matriarchs from before and after Acquin's existence. The red wool represents the bloodline, the white ribbon represents the ancestral realm and the blue represents water, which women are responsible to care for. (Ann Paul/CBC)
A man stands between a blue acrylic drawing and a photo of the moon.
Spasaqsit Possesom’s exhibition pieces include Possesomuwin (left), an acrylic on canvas, and Hunter’s Moon Rising, a digital photograph. (Ann Paul/CBC)

Ann's Eye

Photographer Ann Paul brings an Indigenous lens to stories from First Nations communities across New Brunswick. Click here or on the image below to see more of her work. 

CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News
Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|

Related Stories