A mural depicting the journey towards ‘Truth and Reconciliation’ was officially unveiled in Warman on Tuesday, June 15.
The mural, created by Warman High School (WHS) Art 30 students and WHS Artist-in-residence Ray Keighley over the past two years, adorns an exterior wall of the Route 11 Creative Arts Centre, a city-owned building. The mural was funded by Sask Arts.
WHS art teacher Sarah Gerrard said the unveiling is a “symbolic event” that marks the culmination of Keighley’s term as artist-in-residence at the high school. She said having Keighley, an well-known Indigenous artist, and Indigenous ‘Knowledge Keeper’ Lyndon Linklater work on the project alongside the students provided the young people with a broader understanding of the relationship between different cultures.
“Over the last two years there has been a lot of tragedy in the news regarding issues that disproportionately impact Indigenous people, and all Canadians should care about this,” said Gerrard during the unveiling ceremony. “Exploring truth and reconciliation is often an uncomfortable topic to delve into, because there are ugly truths in Canada’s past and present that our communities have to learn about and grapple with.”
Gerrard said it is incumbent on non-Indigenous individuals to “reflect on our own privileges within society and consider how that impacts us advantageously.”
Keighley said the experience of working on the mural with the students and having a studio near the high school at the Route 11 Creative Arts Centre has been “a wonderful journey” over the past two years.
“Telling the story of truth and reconciliation through the visual arts is a learning journey,” said Keighley. “We never know where it will lead, but it will be positive.
“The dialogue that comes out of that journey is very important because it leads to mutual respect for everyone involved.”
Keighley said the harsh conditions of residential schools echo down the generations. He noted his mother was one of the students who experienced those conditions firsthand.
Warman Mayor Gary Philipchuk said the city is proud to host a mural that displays, in a very public way, its commitment to reconciliation.
He noted the City of Warman early on, along with Great Plains College and WHS, helped initiate the Prairie Rivers Reconciliation Committee (PRRC), which now includes 40 municipalities, First Ntaions and other partners in the region.
Warman played host to the first PRRC conference two years ago.
“It brought out a lot of engagement in the community,” said Philipchuk. “It hasn’t been easy along the way, there have been challenges.
“We have all been challenged, and we’re still on that journey as a city.
“But this mural marks a significant milestone. It’s a discussion point we can come back to because it shows the level of engagement of so many people and organizations at all levels. This is a treasure and we appreciate having it.”