Hosted by the Art Museum, “Mounds & Memory: Understanding the Serpent Mounds at Hiawatha First Nation” is a special gathering of researchers, curators, Elders, and community members to build new relationships among members of Hiawatha First Nation, Rainy River First Nations and other Treaty #3 First Nations, and the University of Toronto. Rainy River First Nations and Hiawatha First Nation are both home to sacred mounds that the Canadian government deemed National Historic Sites and which are now under the stewardship of the respective First Nations.  



This year’s gathering will include a public, one-day symposium at the University of Toronto, comprised of an art workshop, tours, and talks—all free and open to everyone. In the following days, a series of invitation-only workshops for scholars and community members will be held at Hiawatha First Nation that will draw together conversations about preserving, interpreting, teaching about, and animating ancient mounds and earthworks around the Great Lakes. Together, these events will foster new networks of research and knowledge, specifically encouraging diverse approaches to understanding the Serpent Mounds with respect and expertise, combining Indigenous, academic, and artistic ways of knowing.

Mounds & Memory is presented as a program of the Art Museum’s exhibition, Earthwork. Curated by Mikinaak Migwans and featuring the works by Alex Jacobs-Blum, Art Hunter, BUSH Gallery, Edward Poitras, Faye HeavyShield, Lisa Myers, Michael Belmore, Mike MacDonald, and Protect the Tract Collective, the exhibition re-imagines what it means to work with and for Earth, building on ancestral and contemporary practices of repair and resilience toward possible futures. It is on view at the University of Toronto Art Centre in University College until December 20, 2025.

Mounds & Memory Programming

The Art of Quillwork: Connecting with Culture, Creativity, and Community

11am–1pm
Hart House, Reading Room
7 Hart House Circle
Registration is recommended.

Facilitators Jess Howard and Kristina Burton guide participants through a hands-on porcupine quillwork workshop exploring the connections between art, nature, and Indigenous ancestral traditions.

Fire at Ziibiing: A Community Gathering

12pm–3pm
Ziibiing Pavillion and Gardens
Registration is recommended.

Join us for an afternoon of connection, reflection, and community at Ziibiing. Gather around the fire, sip hot tea, and explore the land through the pavilion and medicine garden.
 

Exhibition Tours: Earthwork and acknowledging the land

12pm-2pm
Simcoe Hall and University of Toronto Art Centre
27 King’s College Circle and 15 King’s College Circle
Registration is recommended for Earthwork and required for acknowledging the land

Participate in guided tours of the exhibition “Earthwork” at the University of Toronto Art Centre and the installation “acknowledging the land” at Simcoe Hall.
 

Launch Reception for Michael Belmore’s drift

2pm–3pm
King’s College Circle
Registration is recommended.

Internationally recognised GTA-based Anishinaabe artist Michael Belmore, whose new outdoor sculpture exploring the structure of snow fencing is included in “Earthwork,” will lead an introduction to his work and interests as an artist who employs materials and processes concerned with land, water, and the environment.
 

Understanding Serpent Mounds: An Introduction

3pm–4pm
Seeley Hall, Trinity College
6 Hoskin Ave
Registration is required.

The Mounds Research Collective (Pamela Klassen, Mikinaak Migwans, and Chadwick Cowie) introduces “Mounds & Memory: Understanding the Serpent Mounds at Hiawatha First Nation.” Centring the knowledge and priorities of Hiawatha First Nation as they envision new priorities for their stewardship of Serpent Mounds Park, this event will facilitate the flow of knowledge among Indigenous communities, university researchers, artists, and museums.
 

Artist Panel: The Practice of Earthwork

4pm–6pm
Seeley Hall, Trinity College
6 Hoskin Ave
Registration is required.

Join Earthwork artists Lisa Myers, Michael Belmore, and Art Hunter for a discussion about their practices and how their works engage with the ideas of “Earth work,” moderated by exhibition curator Mikinaak Migwans. A reception in Earthwork at the University of Toronto Art Centre follows the panel discussion.

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Mounds & Memory: Understanding the Serpent Mounds at Hiawatha First Nation” is presented by the Art Museum at the University of Toronto in partnership with the Faculty of Arts & Science, the Department for the Study of Religion, the Department of Art History, and the Office of the Vice-Provost, Students at the University of Toronto. The symposium is developed in partnership with the Mounds & Memory Project and draws on research supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. This project is supported by Toronto Arts Council Strategic Funding and Partners in Art.