Refreshed Riel mural officially unveiled

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This article was published 07/06/2023 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A likeness of one of the province’s most famous sons has returned to St. Norbert after a long delay.

City of Winnipeg and provincial government officials, representatives from Heritage St. Norbert, the St. Norbert Arts Centre and Manitoba Métis Federation, as well as members of the public, gathered Wednesday for the official unveiling of the newly restored mural of Louis Riel at Pembina Highway and Eglise Avenue.

Artist Annie Bergen was unable to make it to the event, which city official Davis Hunter explained was due to her being engaged in other community projects.

However, Hunter passed along a message from Bergen explaining recent efforts made on the artwork first completed in 1997, and depicting Manitoba co-founder Riel (1844-85) amid scenes of Métis life and history.

“The existing mural was weathered and needed a full restoration. Heritage St. Norbert arranged to resurface the wall (of a small commercial building), filling in the gaps between cinder blocks and providing a better surface to paint on. I invited my friend Randa Jagg to work with me on this project… The existing mural themes were refreshed for another generation to learn about, and to welcome travelers to the city from the south.”

The unveiling had originally been slated to take place in 2021, but was pushed back due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Louise May of Heritage St. Norbert recounted the history of the mural and specifically about the great thought and care that went into its creation.

The original had been a collaboration between St. Norbert Arts Centre and Heritage St. Norbert. When the artist, Stephen Jackson (1946-2015), was first approached, he asked to consult on the work with an Indigenous elder.

Jackson then met with elder Jeanne Perreault and devised an approved to-do list of what the mural needed to be.

May told the crowd of the historical importance of Riel to Manitoba and to Canada, as a whole.

Riel had a vision of Manitoba as a land for all the dispossessed people, accommodating both Indigenous peoples and newcomers. This vision, May said, is reflected in the multicultural place Winnipeg and Manitoba remain to this day.

Mayor Scott Gillingham pointed out a group of local students, and said he thought school lessons on Riel and the events surrounding the foundation of Manitoba had changed for the better.

“We were taught differently about the history of Manitoba when I was a young man… When I was in Grade 5. But thankfully things are being corrected” the Winnipeg mayor said.

Gillingham also described Riel as a visionary and echoed thoughts on the welcoming and multicultural nature of Manitoba today.

“The father of our great province is here to greet everyone,” Gillingham said of the mural visitors from the south will pass by when they enter Winnipeg via Highway 75.

The event concluded with Coun. Markus Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River) remarking Riel embodied resilience and determination.

The refreshed mural, he said, represented the culmination of the efforts of various groups who sought to “establish deep roots in their community’s history to leverage the bright future of tomorrow.”

graham.mcdonald@freepress.mb.ca