The MacKenzie Art Gallery is delighted to announce the appointment of Felicia Gay as Curator. Gay has served as Curatorial Fellow since 2019, a position originally cross-appointed with the MacKenzie Art Gallery and University of Regina through a Mitacs-funded fellowship. Now, as she finalizes her PhD work on Indigenous curatorial practice at the University of Regina, she will be joining the MacKenzie full-time to spearhead the development of exhibitions, publications, collections, and public programs at the Gallery.   

Gay is of Swampy Cree heritage (muskego inninew) and thoughtfully blends Indigenous worldviews and counter-narratives through her curatorial practice. Her unique perspective was shaped by her early years living with her grandparents in Cumberland House in northern Saskatchewan, combined with her time in Saskatoon with her mother.

“nanaskomotan (to be grateful for this day) is how I try to live my life, and today, I am grateful to be a part of the Mackenzie Art Gallery curatorial team,” says Gay. “So few Indigenous curators have been hired to work in galleries and museums nationwide. The MacKenzie continues to honour its history and reputation as an institution that has invited Indigenous curators to a place where Indigenous knowledge is welcomed and supported. Coming from a place of community, my work as a curator has hopefully shown my willingness to provide support, collaborate, and experiment. I have admired and learned so much from the amazing staff and leadership. It is an exciting time to be here, and I look forward to what is in store in the future.” 

“Felicia has had an incredible impact on the artistic landscape in Saskatchewan and beyond, and I’m thrilled and honoured to welcome her as a permanent member of our curatorial team,” writes MacKenzie Executive Director & CEO, John G. Hampton. “In her time at the MacKenzie, Gay has exemplified the blending of mind, heart, body, and spirit in her exhibitions, leaving a lasting and emotional impact on visitors and artists alike. I am immensely grateful to have her join an incredible team as we chart the next chapter of the MacKenzie Art Gallery’s legacy.” 

Gay’s upcoming exhibitions include an expanded iteration of her 2021 Ruth Cuthand retrospective presented at U of S Galleries, Beads in the Blood (opening in November, 2024), as well as a long-term installation of building on Gay’s extensive research on the artworks that constitute the Kampelmacher Memorial Collection of Indigenous Art (opening in 2025). 

Gay’s permanent appointment at the MacKenzie comes at a pivotal moment in the institution’s history. Equipped with her insight and experience, she is poised to navigate significant shifts to the Gallery’s policy work with a particular emphasis on collections and programs. 

ABOUT FELICIA GAY

Felicia Gay (matrilineally muskego inninew, Swampy Cree and Scottish) is a curator working with the MacKenzie Art Gallery in Regina. Her research investigates Indigenous-centred curatorial methodology and praxis in institutional spaces. In 2021, she received the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Doctoral Scholarship, SSHRC.

Since her time as a fellow at the MacKenzie Art Gallery, in 2019 she has curated  Dis-Ease: ateh panihk akowsiwin, co-curated with Timothy Long; in 2021, she curated Miskwaabik Animiiki Power Lines: The Work of Norval Morrisseau, Westerkirk Fine Art Collection, Touching Earth and Sky, and The Art of Faye HeavyShield (retrospective and tour ending in 2024), Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina, SK; Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, MB; Nickle Gallery, Calgary, AB; Carleton University Art Gallery, Ottawa, ON, including publication, “The Art of Faye HeavyShield.” In 2018, Gay received the Saskatchewan Arts Award for Leadership for her curatorial and advocacy work with Indigenous artists, which began in 2004.

Gay holds a B. A (Hon) in Art History from 2004 and a master’s degree in art history from 2011. In 2006, she and Joi Arcand co-founded the Red Shift Gallery, a contemporary Aboriginal art space in Saskatoon, SK. Felicia also established Wanuskewin Heritage’s contemporary gallery in 2013, which she led until 2018. Felicia has written publications including “Terrance Houle,” Backflash North Central Intervention (2010)”, “Testimony,” PAVED Meant (Paved Arts)(2014), “Re-naming a New World, Jason Baerg,” Canadian Art  (2018), “Joi T. Arcand-it would be good if they were able to speak,” Mercer Union/Moca,  (2018), “nee poyineek Standing Ground,” borderLines Contemporary Art Biennial (2020) , and “The Art of Faye HeavyShield,” MacKenzie Art Gallery (2024).

Felicia has served on numerous juries, most notable the Gershon Iskowitz in 2021 and Dimensions Biennale, Saskatchewan Craft Council, Saskatoon, SK in 2019. Currently she is a collective member of aka artist run, Saskatoon, the Indigenous Curatorial Collective and Board Member for YWCA, Regina. She is a community member of the northern island community of Cumberland House, SK, on Treaty 5 territory and is a member of the Opaskwayak Swampy Cree Nation, MB. Felicia and her family are visitors to Treaty 4 territory, Regina, SK.

ABOUT THE MACKENZIE 

The MacKenzie Art Gallery is Saskatchewan’s oldest public art gallery, and is committed to creating transformative experiences of the world through art. With a permanent collection that spans 5,000 years and nearly 5,000 works of art, we encompass both the University of Regina’s vast collection and one of Canada’s largest collections of Indigenous art, the Kampelmacher Memorial Collection. Through art, education, and immersive programming, the MacKenzie brings fresh perspectives that transform how people experience history, themselves, and each other.     

The MacKenzie is located in Wascana Park, Oskana Kâ’asastêki in Treaty Four territory, the traditional—and contemporary—territory of the Nehiyawak, Saulteaux, Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota people, and the homeland of the Métis Nation. We are grateful for the support of the Mackenzie Art Gallery Operating Endowment Fund at the South Saskatchewan Community Foundation, as well as the support of our core funders: the Canada Council for the Arts; SaskCulture; the City of Regina; the University of Regina; and the Saskatchewan Arts Board.  

MEDIA CONTACT 

Allison Weed
Communications Manager
MacKenzie Art Gallery
aweed@mackenzie.art
(306)-584-4250 ext. 4284 

 

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