Mi'kmaw artists recreating 180-year-old regalia

"This is the most challenging thing I ever done," said Ernestine Francis, as she pondered the beadwork she and three other Mi'kmawartists have been painstakingly working on throughout the summer at the MetepenagiagHeritage Park.

All four artists are graduates of theNew Brunswick College of Craft and Design. Since June, they have been beading a series of intricate patchwork portions to go onto a modern day recreation of a coat, part of an original outfit that is almost 200 years old.

The history of the regalia dates back to the early 1840s, when British Captain Henry Dunn O'Halloranwas given a ceremonial outfit byMi'kmawChief Joseph Maly Itkobitch.

O'Halloranwas also made an honouraryMi'kmaq chief by Chief Itkobitch for his work gathering census information on Mi'kmaqalong the Miramichi River.

This original regalia is currently housed in the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., where it will remain stored indefinitely because ofits fragile condition.

Mi'kmaw artists recreate 180-year-old regalia at Metepenagiag Heritage Park

3 years ago

Duration 3:00

Ernestine Francis, Ingrid Brooks, Oakley Rain Wysote Gray and Sgoagani Wecenisqon are recreating the beadwork of regalia crafted 180 years ago by three female Mi'kmaw artists.

The original regalia wascrafted by three Mi'kmaw women who were not historically documented or acknowledged for their exceptional beadwork.

Based on oral history, it is believed that two of these women may have beenAnnie Ginnish and Christina Morris, likely from Esgenopetitj First Nation, but the research remains inconclusive.

Sgoagani Mye Wecenisqonsaid that givesworking on the recreatedregalia coat an additional layer of responsibility.

"The women who worked on this jacket, they didn't get the recognition that they really did deserve."

The artist fromEsgenopetitj First Nation said, "Their descendants are ... redoing it and making sure that everybody knows it was created by these women. We're carrying on the tradition of remaking what they did. So I think in a way, this is another way to honour them by remaking the jacket."

Intricate beadwork

The work to recreatethe coat began in 2019 but slowed during the pandemic. The artists returnedthis summer to resume work.

Ingrid Brooks said the work required the artists to make some adjustments in their approach.

"We're trying to revive a lot of the lost artwork like all these double curves. I notice people are putting it on stuff and it's only like a few basic designs they're using," said the artist fromIndian Island First Nation.

"When we seen this coat, we've seen like how many different double curves were in the florals and the ferns, all the intricate beadwork, so we really wanted to promote this ancient beadwork."

ForErnestine Francis, working on the coat has been one of the most daunting but rewarding projects she has pursued.

"Sometimes when I'm beading, a lot of things go through my head...I wonder howour ancestors did this and these were three women and they didn't have lights and magnifyingglasseslike we have," said the artist fromElsipogtog First Nation.

"All the intricacy, like these curves and stuff like that, I never really did that and now I'm doing it. it's challenging, but I love it. I'm learning a lot from these designs. I'm learning a lot from our team here."

All four artists work eight hours a day and as Oakley Rain Wysote Graydescribes, "It's almost therapeutic. It's like you don't even really notice that you're doing eight hours because, like for me, it takes like three hours to get one portion of it done, like one double curve motif."

Graysaid he recalls hearing aboutthe beauty of the original coat when he wasa child.

"I've been like awing about this coat since I knew about it and it's always been a point of reference, especially because my aunt has always told me about it and she did a lot of research," said the artist fromListiguj First Nation.

"What keeps me going when it comes to bead work is the thought of, if my ancestors could do it today, what it would look like? It's kind of like continuing the story that they couldn't live to tell."

Visitors toMetepenagiag Heritage Park can see the artists at work from Tuesdays to Thursdays this summer.

The grand unveiling of the outfit is expected in October at the Heritage Park's exhibit hall.