Weekly We Make: 2D to 3D
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Install image of Death Boat and Other Stories: The Kampelmacher Memorial Collection of Indigenous Art, organized by the MacKenzie Art Gallery, curated by Felicia Gay. Exhibited at: MacKenzie Art Gallery (University of Regina and Wakeling Galleries), 18 July 2025 - 02 May 2027. Photo: Don Hall, courtesy of the MacKenzie Art Gallery.
About the Weekly We Make Activity
Inspired by the many transformations in the exhibition Death Boat and Other Stories: The Kampelmacher Memorial Collection of Indigenous Art, on view at the MacKenzie Art Gallery until 2 May 2027, make an artwork that transforms when you fold it into an origami sculpture.
This workshop is led by one of our amazing Gallery Educators.
About Weekly We Make
It’s an art party! Weekly We Make at the MacKenzie Art Gallery, presented by Canada Life, is an opportunity for individuals and families to drop in and create artwork.
Learn about the artists and artworks in MacKenzie’s Permanent Collection and featured exhibitions with weekly in-person hands-on workshops that can be modified for all ages. Visit our studio to make art with Gallery Educators and guest artists, exploring new and beloved techniques and art materials.
There is no cost to attend these drop-in sessions. All materials are provided.
The Exhibition that Inspired Us
Curator Felicia Gay says that to be Indigenous is to know deeply what transformation is. And if you listen closely, these artworks will tell you many stories about change. They speak of moving from youth to old age, life to death, physical to spiritual, and even of the changes brought by colonialism to North America. Some of these changes happen in one direction, but many are in fact cycles echoed by the looping layout of this gallery space.
This exhibition’s title is inspired by the ceramic artwork Death Boat by Inuk artist Roger Aksadjuak. Death Boat spoke to Felicia in its own way. At first glance, it seems to show a funeral practice and a transition between life and death. Yet that is just the surface-level story. Come and see if it tells you further tales!
This exhibition features artworks collected by Thomas Druyan and Alice Ladner. The couple donated over 1,000 works by Indigenous artists from across Turtle Island (North America). The collection is named after Thomas’s grandparents, Wolf and Sala Kampelmacher.
This is the second exhibition featuring artworks from the Kampelmacher collection. The first was Across the Turtle’s Back and was curated by Michelle LaVallee. The collection continues to be an important resource for sharing Indigenous curating and artmaking.
Install image of Death Boat and Other Stories: The Kampelmacher Memorial Collection of Indigenous Art, organized by the MacKenzie Art Gallery, curated by Felicia Gay. Exhibited at: MacKenzie Art Gallery (University of Regina and Wakeling Galleries), 18 July 2025 - 02 May 2027. Photo: Don Hall, courtesy of the MacKenzie Art Gallery.
Studio Activity
Can you tell a story from beginning to end with just one picture? Inspired by the work of Inuk printmaker Pitseolak Ashoona, make a drawing that tells a story without using multiple pictures or panels.
MATERIALS
- Thin drawing paper, cut into squares (15 cm x 15cm or bigger)
- Pencils, erasers, and sharpeners
- Markers and pencil crayons
- Printed folding instructions for different origami shapes
- Animal patterns from WWF
- Beginner origami patterns from Origami OK (for young artists, we recommend some of the easy options like the leaf, the plane, and the heart)
- Cat finger puppet from The Spruce Crafts
- (Optional) origami instruction books
INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1
Draw an image on a thin, square piece of paper.
Step 2
Choose an origami pattern. You may want to think about how the shape is related to your original artwork.
Step 3
Fold your artwork in the origami pattern. Make sure your drawing is on the side that will show when you are done folding.
Step 4
Reflect on how your artwork changed.
- How do the lines you made look different once folded into a three-dimensional shape?
- Can you see new meanings in your artwork now that it has transformed?
- Could you tell a story about what you drew in the original artwork, changing into this new shape?
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
- Why do you think curator Felicia said that to be Indigenous is to know deeply what transformation is?
IMPORTANT WORDS
- Indigenous Peoples: the first people to live in a place. In Canada, Indigenous Peoples include the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. The word Indigenous can also mean something belonging to Indigenous Peoples.
- Transformation: changing from one thing into another.
