CHRIS FREMANTLE

ayr converses presentation/conversation

Be Strong Like Two People: Learning from the Elders of the Tlicho First Nation People in the North West Territories of Canada

Gavin Renwick, Professor and Canada Chair of Design, University of Alberta

Thursday 22 August 2013 : 6pm – 9pm : Ayr Auld Kirk Hall (Upper Hall)

Gavin Renwick, Professor and Canada Chair of Design at the University of Alberta, has spent more than ten years working with the Tlicho first nation people in the North West Territories of Canada on their land claim to the Canadian Government. Renwick was until recently Professor of Art and Policy at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, University of Dundee, where he continues to be a visiting professor. His role with the Tlicho has been as a cultural intermediary assisting with the articulation of the understanding of land and inhabitation of the Tlicho, who are a nomadic people.

Renwick has regularly reported on key aspects of the thinking of the Elders, particularly around their relationships with young people. In his presentation, Gavin Renwick will explore the Elders understanding of the pressures on the young. First, the need to be “strong like two people”, which is a reference to the need for young people to be both strong in their own culture and strong in western culture. The second is the need to be “modern in your own language”, which clearly sets out one way to address the first challenge.

Gavin Renwick is originally from Motherwell. He was brought up among the last generation of Lanarkshire people who worked in coal, iron and steel. He has realised projects across Europe, as well as in Turkey and Canada. His present work utilises practice-led methods that place the practitioner-researcher as a cultural intermediary between indigenous and metropolitan culture. His applied and curatorial practice aims to facilitate cultural continuity for traditional communities. For the past decade he has been working between Scotland and the Canadian Northwest Territories, most recently for the Tlicho (formerly Dogrib) Dene community of Gameti as founder and coordinator of Gameti Ko, an incorporated society directed by a board of Elders.

The presentation/conversation will be chaired by Chris Fremantle, ayr converses co-founder with Lianne Hackett.

Following the presentation and Q&A, there will be the opportunity to converse with a glass of wine or soft drink. A small collection will be made towards venue hire and refreshments.

Please confirm your attendance by Friday 16 August info@ayrconverses.org.uk

Gavin Renwick’s website

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Incubator for Northern Design and Innovation