SALAM FROM NIAGARA FALLS takes up first- and second-generation Afghan and Iranian home-making in the context of ongoing settler colonialism on Turtle Island. Family photographs taken at Niagara Falls are a staple in many migrant and refugee homes, often evoking newfound relationships to belonging in Canada. Artists refute the nostalgia associated with Canada as “a nation of immigrants,” drawing from and digitally manipulating archives to share experiences with migration, displacement, and settlement. Curated by Mitra Fakhrashrafi.
Shelby Lisk (Shelby Lisk Photography) is an artist, writer and photographer, born and raised in Belleville, close to her roots of Kenhtè:ke (Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory). Shelby's work responds to the colonial history of landscape painting, land ownership, and more broadly the forms of knowledge that are more easily taken for granted as truth. In drawing from her poetry and photo-based practice, Shelby will extend a discussion on colonial landscapes, nostalgia and the possibilities of imagining multitudes of perspectives, stories, and histories. Talk will be in English but Q&A period is open to questions in English, Farsi + Dari. Free tea + refreshments on site.