Federal government still missing 111 Indigenous artworks from its collection

OTTAWA - The federal government still can't locate 111 Indigenous artworks missing from its collection — nearly two years after an internal audit found it couldn't account for 132.

The Indigenous Art Centre's collection — established by the federal government in 1965 to protect, preserve and promote Indigenous art — consists of more than 5,000 works from First Nations, Métis and Inuit artists.

The collection, which is valued at roughly $14.4 million, includes works by such renowned artists as Christi Belcourt, Elisapee Ishulutaq, Kent Monkman and Norval Morrisseau.

An internal audit of the collection, dated November 2024, was posted last October on the Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada website. It tracked the operations of the department’s Indigenous Art Centre from April 2019 to August 2024 and said the centre could not account for 132 items in the collection.

Rainbow Stage star relates to Elle Woods’ perseverance

Nearly 9,000 aspiring barristers and solicitors cross their fingers and send in their LSAT scores to Harvard University each year, but less than 10 per cent of applicants wind up on campus in Cambridge, Mass.

In Legally Blonde, the musical opening tonight at Rainbow Stage, Elle Woods (Claire Mac Master) defies the undercutting judgment of her blue-blood boyfriend Warner (Duncan Cox) to earn a spot in the Ivy League, leaving her doubters aghast and crimson-faced.

“What?” asked Elle — played by Reese Witherspoon in the 2001 film version — “Like it’s hard?”

The New York-born Mac Master never had any aspirations to pursue a law career, but can relate to her character’s plucky self-determination based on her experience at Toronto Metropolitan University’s undergraduate acting program, which accepts 25 applicants each year from an international pool of hundreds.

A Winnipeg home with a mountain view? You won’t find a real one, but AI-generated visual suggests otherwise

Manitoba’s mountain range peeked out behind a Scotia Street home.

At least, it did in a photo attached to a real estate listing for 232 Scotia St. in Winnipeg’s (flat) Seven Oaks neighbourhood.

Another picture — now removed — showed a cartoon cityscape viewable from the bungalow’s front porch.

Both photos had tags in their bottom left corners: “AI-generated content.”

Winnipeg pooches get time in spotlight in Rainbow Stage production of Legally Blonde

On stage and screen there are no small roles, but there are small actors.

And then there is Lil’ Beast, a spunky, wild-haired performer who weighs in at 1.5 kilograms (3.5 lbs).

“You think of a small dog, and then he’s even smaller,” says his owner Britainy Jasper.

In April, when the beast was only six months old, he was encouraged by dozens of dog park acquaintances to tap into his creative side and audition for his first professional acting gig.

Memories of East Selkirk evoked on Zoon Monkman’s new album

At the dawn of the MP3 era, an adolescent Zoon Monkman didn’t have the money for an iPod or a Microsoft Zune, the short-lived competitor to Apple’s revolutionary personal-listening device.

What the recording artist from Brokenhead Ojibway Nation did have in his backpack was the catalogue for the Scholastic Book Club, where only one product demanded attention: an AM-FM radio pen that scoured the airwaves for connection with every click.

For Monkman — a Polaris Music Prize-nominated musician who records as Zoon and pioneered the “moccasingaze” genre, which blends the dreamy textures of shoegaze with the rhythms and energies of Indigenous song — his mother’s gift of the ballpoint pen was a means of both self-discovery and the development of his musical taste.

During lonely days as an elementary student at East Selkirk’s Happy Thought School, the device was also a recess-hour tether to distant worlds, where artists such as Feist, Avril Lavigne and Broken Social Scene were introduced by the enthusiastic voice of a man who called himself Ace Burpee.

À Granby, le Manitoba francophone au micro

Bercée par la musique depuis l’enfance, Mercédès Beaudry sera la seule représentante du Manitoba à Jamais Trop Tôt, le volet jeunesse du Festival international de la chanson de Granby (FICG), au Québec. Le 16 août, l’auteure compositrice-interprète de 17 ans montera sur la scène du Palace de Granby aux côtés de 19 autres artistes de la relève francophone venus des quatre coins du Canada.

Mère, père, frère et même ses chats : à peine sélectionnée, Mercédès Beaudry s’est empressée de leur annoncer la bonne nouvelle. La jeune artiste se trouvait avec un ami quand le téléphone s’est mis à sonner : “Pour la première fois dans ma vie, je dois prendre un appel,” s’amuse-t-elle. C’est avec un grand enthousiasme qu’elle a accueilli cette sélection.

Après le dévoilement public de la cohorte, la nouvelle de sa participation s’est vite répandue dans son entourage. “Il y a des personnes qui m’ont textée et qui ne savent pas forcément en quoi consiste Jamais Trop Tôt, alors je dois expliquer ça à tout le monde.”

Au programme du FICG, qui se déroulera du 13 au 23 août, Jamais Trop Tôt n’est pas une compétition, mais un projet musical pancanadien avec un spectacle à la clé. Vingt interprètes de la relève francophone venus des quatre coins du Canada, dont près de la moitié du Québec, passeront cinq jours à l’Université Bishop’s, du 11 au 15 août, pour suivre une formation vocale et scénique. Ils se produiront ensuite en spectacle le 16 août à 19 h 30 au Palace de Granby.

Why celebrities from Zendaya to Kylie Jenner are wearing Fecal Matter

The brand name behind recent showstopping fashion moments isn’t quite as delicate as their romantic and otherworldly looks. When asked what an ethereal Zendaya was wearing for the “Odyssey” premiere in New York, her stylist Law Roach responded: “Fecal Matter.”

Zendaya’s angelic strapless gown with feathered white wings was the work of Matières Fécales — yes, in English, Fecal Matter — the Paris-based, high-end fashion house founded in Montreal over a decade ago that’s, seemingly suddenly, everywhere.

Why Matières Fécales is called ... that

The design duo behind Matières Fécales, Steven Raj Bhaskaran and Hannah Rose Dalton, have aimed to subvert beauty with their own alien-like personal style, including dramatic white makeup, shaved heads and eyebrows, and skin boots made to look like realistic feet.

Winnipeg artist RYAN AD's ambitions growing as work reaches Paris

RYAN AD is Jamaican-Grenadian, lives in Winnipeg and receives iPhone notifications in French.

One of these notifications recently gave the photographer (who goes by his artist name) good news: a prestigious Parisian art gallery was interested in featuring two of his photographs in one of its exhibitions. One was captured in Manitoba, the other in Jamaica.

“I felt a constant sense of community in Jamaica. You’ll walk down the road and people will talk to you,” he says. “Here you have to be buying something to exist in most places.”

One photo, entitled Born Underwater, is a gentle depiction of Lake Winnipeg, reminiscent of Wanda Koop for its symmetry and pastel-like softness. The other, Myself When Young, shows a man leaning on an old car with its hood popped, a glimpse into Jamaica’s culture of repair and resourcefulness.

This organ will play one composition until 2640. It’s redefining how slowly music can be played

HALBERSTADT, Germany (AP) — A small organ in eastern Germany is the headliner of the world’s slowest concert. It has been playing the same piece of music by composer John Cage at a glacial pace for nearly 25 years.

A rare chord change on Wednesday — from seven notes to eight — represented the completion of about 4% of the 639-year endeavor of the John Cage Organ Project Halberstadt.

It was a historic moment inside the medieval Burchardi Church, in Halberstadt, Germany, that reflected the past, present and future of the project, as well as those who are following its — albeit very slow — progression.

“As fast as our world is developing, I think it’s a wonderful place to be and to come to yourself and just to be touched by this ‘being there,’"said Anneli Borgmann, chairwoman of the John Cage Organ Project Halberstadt’s board of trustees.

‘Sewing angels’ come to Folklorama pavilion’s rescue after Ghana dancers’ costumes stolen

Parents and volunteers had tears in their eyes when dozens of young dancers took to the stage for their opening performances at Folklorama’s Ghana pavilion Sunday night.

Duelling symbols: Alberta and Canada flags creating division ahead of referendum

EDMONTON -

Sarah Batchelor says it started a few weeks ago when a large blue flag bearing Alberta's shield of arms appeared on her neighbour's window in Airdrie, a city north of Calgary.

The 49-year-old music teacher, who has lived in the province for most of her life, says she would not have been bothered if her neighbour put it up a couple of years ago.

But now it irks her because of its widespread use by separatists.

Sous les eaux islandaises avec Julien Nayet-Pelletier

Avec Julien Looks Under Things: Under Iceland’s Waters, le vulgarisateur scientifique Julien Nayet-Pelletier entraîne le public sous les eaux islandaises. Son documentaire met en lumière une biodiversité fascinante et les personnes qui travaillent à sa préservation.

Devenir cinéaste n’était pas un rêve d’enfance du franco-manitobain Julien Nayet-Pelletier.

Mais bien qu’il ait toujours été fasciné par la nature et le théâtre, et bien qu’il demeure fan des documentaires de David Attenborough, c’est donc sans surprise que la vie l’a finalement mené sur cette voie.

Il est l’animateur de la série numérique Julien Looks Under Things, où il vise à dévoiler les éléments variés de la nature avec humour et un talent pour rendre la nature accessible.

Climate change threatens events we wait for all year

I can’t be the only one feeling some existential dread about our summers, and the things that make them special, in the face of a changing climate.

On eve of Folklorama, Ghana pavilion scrambles to replace stolen outfits

Volunteers from Folklorama’s Ghana pavilion scrambled to replace cultural costumes for about 40 young dancers after the outfits were stolen in Winnipeg days before the annual festival begins.

Two plastic storage bins containing the costumes, to be worn by children and teenagers, were taken from the trunk of a parked car on Banning Street, near Notre Dame Avenue in the West End, likely late Wednesday or early Thursday.

“I felt sad that this has happened. I felt completely devastated for the mother who had them in her car,” said pavilion co-ordinator Abigail Larson. “The initial feeling of sadness changed to, ‘OK, how do we make this a positive?’”

The costumes belong to the Ghana Union of Manitoba Dancers, whose members have rehearsed for months for Folklorama, which begins Sunday.

Cultural consultation gives Indigenous stories strength in Netflix’s new Little House on the Prairie

Through her work as an Indigenous consultant for film and TV, Julie O’Keefe, a citizen of the Osage Nation, has brought accuracy and authenticity to works such as Martin Scorsese’s 2023 crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon, the 2025 western miniseries American Primeval and, most recently, Rebecca Sonnenshine’s new adaptation of Little House on the Prairie.

But she doesn’t work solo.

“One of the things that I always say is, in any of these jobs that I do — whether it’s Shoshone and Paiute and Ute or Osage — I never come alone to this,” says O’Keefe, who grew up in Pawhuska, Okla., the heart of the Osage Nation, and is now based in Santa Fe, N.M. “I engage because those stories are so much richer with our voices added to it, and we know that.

“I’m sitting down with brilliant directors, brilliant writers, and I’m handing over pieces of history that they’re like, ‘How come nobody knows this?’ And the great part is, this is the time in history … people are really starting to get on top of wanting this for their stories, because it really wasn’t of any importance before.”

In an apartment above the Sherbie, famous local artists line the walls

Directly above the West Broadway vendor and noisy bar now known as the Kyoto Kat Club, amid a primly kept wardrobe and dirty coffee mugs, Josh Peterson’s bachelor suite is bursting with coveted Manitoba art.

Giant metal roosters spread autism acceptance in Maine after town zoning spat

OGUNQUIT, Maine (AP) — Giant metal roosters are popping up on lawns in and around a community in southern Maine and as far away as New Zealand in support of a 6-year-old autistic girl and her love of the colorful creations.

David and Sara LeBlanc had a rotating display of the roughly 6-foot-tall (1.8-meter-tall) ornaments decorating their Ogunquit lawn until officials in the small coastal town deemed them to be impermissible advertising for their attached restaurant, The Omelette Factory.

The couple initially resisted the town's removal order, insisting the roosters were meant to comfort their daughter Pyper, not advertise their business.

“Roosters don’t lay eggs,” David LeBlanc told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

New graphic images are rolling out on cigarette packs in Canada. Could more be done?

TORONTO - A baby swarmed by smoke. A toilet of bloody urine. A cancerous colon.

These are among the new series of 13 graphic images that are required to be printed on cigarette packages across Canada by Aug. 1.

This is the fourth set of warnings mandated by Health Canada since 2000, aiming to reduce tobacco use to less than 5 per cent by 2035.

According to the federal health agency’s latest projections, Canada appears on track to reach that goal. Tobacco use was down to an estimated 13 per cent in 2024, compared to 29 per cent in 2001. Approximately 300,000 Canadians who smoked in 2023 quit in 2024.

Sea Bears Dance Crew takes athleticism to the next level

Many grow up believing dance can only be a hobby and never a career. The Sea Bears Dance Crew defies the notion by showing there can be a professional side of dance in Winnipeg.

Tasha Farmer and Kersey Sarao lead a team of 18 dancers from different backgrounds and styles. Together, they create a high-energy game-day experience — one that encourages everyone in the arena to get up and boogie.

Farmer started dancing at a young age, experimenting in all that was offered.

“I trained in ballet, lyrical, hip hop, musical theatre — every single style you can think of,” she said.

Indigenous drum group celebrates sisterhood, solidarity

Aliyah Yellowback wants a seat at the drum circle.

There are differing Indigenous teachings and perspectives on whether women should join in, but the 16 year old has found a spot around a big drum inside a welcoming community at St. John’s High School.

“I automatically get goosebumps and shivers in me — it’s such an empowering feeling,” Aliyah said as she described what it’s like to perform her favourite song with drum group Leading Lynx (Niighani Bezhew in Anishinaabemowin).

“Strong Woman Song really resonates with our drum group because we are strong women. We are resilient, we are powerful and when people hear our voices, I feel like they can feel that, too.”

Winnipeg Beach vinyl boutique helps lake-goers get in the groove

Carlson Teakle is the owner of Beachside Vinyl, a 400-square-foot shop located at 18 Main St., a (Rolling) stone’s throw away from the shores of Lake Winnipeg. The 53-year-old father of four and grandfather of two admits to having fielded the question, “Why Winnipeg Beach?” a number of times since his grand opening earlier this year. His stock reply: why not Winnipeg Beach?

Manitoba documentary focuses lens on environmental defenders, beauty of prairies

Everything We Need Is Here is the latest sumptuously shot Manitoba film rooted in the Prairie landscape.

Though totally unrelated in subject matter, the documentary recalls the 2024 Daughters of the Sun with its saturated and slow-mo sweeps across boreal forests and limestone tinted lakes.

But while Daughters has much murmured narration and arthouse flair, Everything is a plucky film, a can-do sort of doc about the land and its grassroots defenders.

Their voices resonate strong and clear across storylines that weave together the joys of foraging and local environmental protests.

New Folklorama mural rises in Winnipeg’s West End

A Métis sash, Chinese dragon, Japanese lanterns, Scottish bagpipes and an Italian Vespa scooter are just a few of the cultural symbols taking shape on a new Folklorama mural in Winnipeg’s West End, celebrating the annual festival and the communities that have helped define it.