Kahnawà:ke Artist Featured in Montreal Peel Street Installation

KAHNAWAKE – The Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK) wishes to inform the community of its collaboration with the City of Montreal on the installation of a series of sculptures on Peel Street entitled Tsi niionkwarihò:ten/Our Stories, Our Way: Peel Trail highlighting archaeological discoveries on Peel and Sherbrooke streets. Works from local artist MC Snow will be featured.

Beginning this month, a series of bronze works will begin to appear in the public space. When completed this fall, they will form a route of eleven (11) stations, each consisting of two spheres - one representing the Indigenous experience and the other representing the non-native perspective - where passers-by can sit and listen to the story of the encounter and cohabitation between the Haudenosaunee and the first European settlers. This dialogue is inspired by themes from the Ohén:ton Karihwatéhkwen (Words Before All Others).

The official Unveiling of the first of these stations took place on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, at Promenade Smith, at the intersection of Peel and Smith Streets in Montreal. Ohén:ton Í:ente ne Ratitsénhaienhs (Grand Chief) Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer and Ratsénhaienhs Ross Montour addressed viewers at the event, along with the Mayoress of Montreal Valerie Plante and other dignitaries including the artists, MC Snow and Kyra Revenko.

"We'd like to take this time to thank the city of Montreal for including a local Kahnawà:ke artist in this project, and for placing such high importance on this newfound historical discovery in Tiohtià:ke," said Ratsénhaienhs Ross Montour. "It is encouraging to see the respect that the City is showing to Kahnawà:ke as they lead the charge in the duty to consult and accommodate First Nations."

"We are proud to unveil the very first bronze sculptures by artists MC Snow and Kyra Revenko, launching the new Peel Trail. This project was born of a shared desire with Kahnawake and our Indigenous partners to tell the story revealed by the archaeological digs carried out on Peel Street from 2016 to 2019. We seized the opportunity of the redevelopment of Peel Street to create a greener, more user-friendly street, while revealing the Indigenous presence in public spaces by integrating commemorative elements celebrating Iroquoian history. The city of Montréal is a metropolis of reconciliation, and this is reflected in all our actions, such as this major project", declared the mayor of Montréal, Valérie Plante.

Between 2016 and 2019, archaeological excavations carried out at the corner of Sherbrooke and Peel streets revealed traces of the presence of an important Iroquoian village dating from the period 1300-1400 AD, long before the arrival of the first Europeans.

Among the discoveries made, there are more than 2000 shards of pottery, nearly a hundred fragments of ceramic pipes, and various food remains, including animal bones and charred plant seeds. These remains are part of the important Dawson site, discovered around 1860 between Mansfield and Metcalfe streets, south of Sherbrooke Street.

Given the importance of the archaeological discoveries, the City of Montreal began a process of consultation and co-creation with Kahnawà:ke and various partners in order to jointly design ways to showcase the history that has unfolded.