The Spirit Sings

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Calgary's Glenbow Museum will highlight about 650 objects on loan from museums across the world in Olympic exhibition

The Glenbow Museum's exhibition of Native artefacts, called the Spirit Sings will be opened by Secretary of State, Joe Clark Jan. 14, 1988.

The exhibition will highlight about 650 objects loaned from museums across the world as well as a unique three-month festival of contemporary Native art, crafts, dance and literature.

Some of the groups participating in the festival are the Eagle Society dancers from the Blackfoot reserve, the Rainbow Creek dancers from the northwest coast, and the Inuit Delta drummers from Inuvik. There will also be a children's event featuring Metis author Maria Campbell, who will read her stories and a puppet show performed by Martha Campiou-Zarutsky.

During the three months of the exhibition visitors will be able to view a variety of ancient artefacts, some of which have never been shown in Canada.

The exhibition is divided into six geographic areas: northwest coast, western subarctic, Arctic, northern plains, northern woodlands and East Coast. Artifacts from each of these areas will be exhibited together along with information on the Aboriginal people of that area.

The 11th Earl of Elgin, whose great-grandfather was a governor-general of Canada 136 years ago, recently loaned the museum a rare ball-headed Iroquois war club cared in human likeness.

Other artefacts include: a navelcord amulet from the Blood or Blackfoot band, an amulet cluster loaned from the national museums of Scotland, a finely carved ?? whimsy basket from the Micmac-Maliseet people. This basket is made from wood, sweetgrass and ribbon.

The exhibition is sponsored by Shell Canada who donated $1.1 million, the largest corporate contribution to a Canadian ? arts exhibition. Olympics Calgary Olympiques (OCO '88) organizing committee of the Calgary Winter Olympic Games donated ? and the National Museums of Canada? Donated $300,000.

The exhibition will open to the public Jan. 15, 1988 until May 1, 1988 then will move to the Ottawa's Canadian Museum of Civilization, July 1.

The exhibition will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week. Admission will be $6 per adult. There will also be a series of recorded and guided tours as well with programs and school group programs.