I was introduced to the TRC about a month ago when one of my professors at Leiden University sent out an email about an internship opportunity at a local textile centre. I am 22 years old, born and raised in British Columbia, Canada, and prior to August 2020 I had never set foot in Europe. I have always been interested in historical fashion and textiles, so you can imagine when I saw an opportunity to work with a large collection of textiles from all around the world, I scrambled to reach out and get in contact!

Embroidered mocassins produced and worn by Canadian Inuit, late 20th century (TRC 2009.0261a-b).

With extensive collections of items, and the internship itself involving two incoming massive donations with objects from Central Europe, the Balkans, Afghanistan, and elsewhere, I was a little surprised to see so few Canadian pieces in the TRC Collection. Canada has a troubled history when it comes to cultural heritage, but one day I would love to see all the different Indigenous communities and the Canadian textile industry take their place in the TRC collection.

Of the items from the Canadian region, the two most prominent pieces are two pairs of Inuit moccasins (TRC 2009.0260a-b and TRC 2009.0261a-b). The Inuit are one of the most famous indigenous groups from Canada, known for their warm fur clothing (such as an anorak) and their arctic style of living. To live in such a climate they have used knowledge passed down for thousands of years in order to understand the land, ocean, local animals, and sky.

Pair of embroidered and beaded boots produced and worn by Canadian Inuit, late 20th century (TRC 2009.0260a-b).

Fur trade with Indigenous people starting in the 1700s stimulated contacts with European explorers, and in the 1800s the mixing of French and Indigenous groups established Métis communities which encouraged the development of new textile styles.

Canadian postage stamp, 1993, showing a ceremonial robe called Kwakwaka'wakw (TRC 2016.2081e).European explorers introduced glass beads called sapangaq or “precious stones”, which quickly became highly desirable among the Inuit, and were used extensively in intricate patterns on a variety of garments and shoes. Previously, beads had been made using bone, shell, or stones, but the introduction of glass beads allowed for a range of new colours to be used. Probably produced by merchants working on the island of Murano, close to Venice, these glass beads were used as objects of trade all over the world.

The origin of the beads was adopted into Inuit oral history, Elder Madelina Ivalu said in Inuit Piqutingit ('What Belongs to Inuit') (2006):

“[Inuit have] always had beads,” she explains. “I don’t know how they got beads. My mother used to tell us they grow hanging from weeds. They used to swat them with a kayak paddle and catch them in a seal skin laid on the ground. They are found on an island near Iglulik. Probably lots dropped in the water! They grow threaded on the stalks of weeds.”

Beads were quickly adopted into Inuit textile tradition, and it is furthermore possible that there is a direct relationship between the patterns found in beadwork and the patterns in traditional Inuit tattoos. Repeated horizontal and vertical lines as well as geometric designs can be found throughout Inuit beadwork and Inuit tattoos.

Detail of a wall hanging made by the coastal Salish, an indigenous people in British Columbia and neighbouring state of Washington (TRC 2020.3741).Beadwork on moccasins can tell a variety of stories. While commonly made now for the tourist market, the beadwork seen on the vamp can tell a story about the culture, status, heritage, or identity of the wearer. The beadwork on the smaller pair (TRC 2009.0261a-b) appears to have been sewn in what is called an “Overlaid Stitch” where each column is a line of beads on one thread which, when laid down, forms a pattern.

I was lucky enough to have what was called an “Aboriginal Education Program” at my small-town elementary school in British Columbia. We spent time with a local elder learning traditional practises, such as drum making, sewing, kayak paddle making, and igloo building, among others.

These techniques are extremely important to pass down, due to the amount of heritage lost during the colonisation of what is currently Canadian and American territory. The objects were meant to be held, used, and learned from, which is why I find it so important that more Indigenous North American textiles eventually find their way to the TRC. So if any of the readers is willing to help buidling up the collection of Canadian items, please contact the TRC (Dit e-mailadres wordt beveiligd tegen spambots. JavaScript dient ingeschakeld te zijn om het te bekijken.).

AJ Salter, 14 December 2021