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NLIS 2 August 1, 2003 (Tourism, Culture and Recreation) Ministers officially opens travelling exhibit Julie Bettney, Minister of Tourism, Recreation and Culture, and Judy Foote, MHA for the District of Grand Bank and Minister of Industry, Trade and Rural Development, officially opened two travelling exhibits yesterday at the Provincial Seaman�s Museum in Grand Bank. The Canadian Museum of Civilization�s exhibit Cross-Currents: 500 Generations of Aboriginal Fishing in Atlantic Canada examines Aboriginal fishing in the region from the distant past up to the modern challenges facing First Peoples such as the Mi�kmaq of New Brunswick. The second exhibit Newfoundland: A Place Called Home produced by the Historic Sites Association is a sculpture-based recollection of artist Joan Woods� memories of home. "These two exhibits are a great documentation of who we are as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians and our place in world experience," said Minister Bettney. "Cross-Currents, presents a component of our province�s fisheries history in the broader context of the region and speaks to the experience of change and a declining fishery that we all share. The second exhibit Newfoundland: A Place Called Home is a wonderful documentation of what many of us would call the everyday aspects of life. Joan Woods celebrates her family and her childhood in St. John�s, outport life, picnics, children�s play as well as traditional customs and events such as mummering and the Royal St. John�s Regatta." Minister Foote said Grand Bank is an appropriate location to showcase the two exhibits. "The Provincial Seaman�s Museum was designed to resemble the sails of a schooner reflecting part of the vast and interesting history of Newfoundland and Labrador," said Minister Foote. "The Bank Fishery on the nose and tail of the Grand Banks has been the mainstay of many communities of the district of Grand Bank for hundreds of years. Cross-Currents: 500 Generations of Aboriginal Fishing in Atlantic Canada provides us with a new perspective of our use of this shared resource. This is an exhibit which I am sure will intrigue our many tourists and residents." These two exhibits fulfill the mandate of the provincial program of travelling exhibits through the Provincial Museum system. By presenting local exhibits, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians can better understand our own history and experience, and through Canadian or international exhibits we can better understand the world around us. "This is an exciting time for us as we prepare the Provincial Museum, Provincial Archives and Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador for the move to The Rooms and we prepare to build the West Coast Exhibition Centre in Corner Brook," said Minister Bettney. "These initiatives will allow us to build a stronger network of museum facilities. It is our hope that, by working together, we will be able to offer more programs, to develop more exhibits and to better present the amazing diversity of stories that represent our home and the world that we live in." Media contact:
2003 08 01 9:35 a.m. |
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