Indigenous public artworks coming to Lincoln's Jordan Hollow Indigenous Cultural Park
The Town of Lincoln is taking a step toward Reconciliation by announcing the selection of two site-specific Indigenous public artworks.
Promoting Indigenous culture and celebrating the work of contemporary Indigenous artists, the artworks will be installed permanently in Jordan Hollow Indigenous Cultural Park, which is set to be built at 3039 King St.
The project is partnered with Plenty Canada, an Indigenous non-profit organization that facilitates access and shares resources with Indigenous peoples to support their environmental and cultural sustainable development goals.
Plenty Canada received a nonrepayable contribution of $180,000 through the Government of Canada’s Tourism Relief Fund, delivered by the Federal Economic Development Agency for southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), to support the project.
The first piece, titled "Water Scroll," is a 13 foot aluminum sculpture created by the artist team Kathryn Corbiere, Anishinaabe-kwe /M’Chigeeng First Nation and Sophie-Ann Edwards of Kagawong.
Water Scroll will bring “the curving shapes of the Twenty Mile Creek waterway and will include Indigenous languages engraved throughout,” symbolizing the connection between Indigenous people and water, and the respect that Indigenous cultures have for nature.
The second piece, "Two Row Helix," is a 12 foot sculpture by artist team David Beyer, of the Fisher River Cree First Nation in Toronto, and Lilly Otasevic, also from Toronto.
"Two Row Helix" is a colourful and vibrant representation of a “ribbonlike form,” bringing the powerful symbols of the “Two Row Wampum belt” — meaning peace, friendship and respect — and the DNA helix.
The pieces, according to Plenty Canada, demonstrate a “commitment to promoting cultural understanding and artistic appreciation.”
"The spirit of co-operation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples to make the Jordan Hollow Indigenous Cultural Park happen is a positive reflection of the values of Niagara,” said Karl Dockstader, Plenty Canada adviser for content, culture, and protocol and art jury member.
Mayor Sandra Easton said the public art has “the power to bring people together and to spark important conversations about culture, history, and the environment.”
“These two pieces are sure to do just that,” Easton added.
Filomena Tassi, minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for southern Ontario, said the government recognized that tourism is vital to southern Ontario's “vibrancy and economic health.”
“I am committed to helping businesses find new and innovative ways to recover and thrive once again,” Tassi said. “Investments through the Tourism Relief Fund are helping ensure that the region’s tourism sector is well-positioned to welcome back visitors today and in the years to come.”
The park was originally supposed to be completed in 2023, but the replacement of the nearby Twenty Mile Bridge meant construction crews needed to use the park as a laydown area and set park plans back to 2024.
The artwork will be featured in the planned art corridor and will complement the existing plan to upgrade the park, which includes the construction of a longhouse and palisades and a semi-sloping amphitheatre designed by Six Nations based architecture firm Two Row Architect, and landscape architecture firm adesso design.
Beatriz Baleeiro, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Grimsby Lincoln News
