Presence of the past – Discussion with MC Snow

Discover the artistic process of MC Snow through the emotions and messages conveyed by Kanien’kehá:ka cultural objects

February 23, 2024

”Everything is connected… the natural materials I use, the idea of bearing the importance of those ideas, the relationship between the spirit and the natural world… they’re all connected to the same things: to the human calendar.”
– MC Snow

For its first collaboration with the Contemporary Native Art Biennial, the Museum will host Kanien’kehà:ka artist MC Snow. In two original works, the artist explores the messages and emotions conveyed by the Kanien’kehá:ka objects in the Museum’s Indigenous Cultures collection.

As the artist wished to highlight the importance of researching and preserving Indigenous cultural assets, MC Snow and Jonathan Lainey, Curator, Indigenous Cultures, selected over forty objects from the collection, including pottery, baby carriers, dolls and arrows, to accompany the artist’s works.

Mc Snow

MC Snow is a multidisciplinary Kanien’kehà:ka artist living in Kahnawá:ke. MC is a graduate of the University of Ottawa fine arts department (BFA). He has been working and exhibiting in Canada and the United States since the 1990s. His mostly sculptural work combines traditional materials and techniques. While reflecting contemporary concerns, his work contributes to preserving traditional artistic value and defending Kanien’kehà:ka cultural identity.

In 2021, MC curated the exhibition Ka’shatsténhsera presented at the Contemporary Native Art Biennial. In 2023, he took part in the Biennale Internationnele Métiers d’Arts et Création in Paris, showcasing Indigenous artists and creators from Quebec. His many ongoing projects include designing street furniture by producing 10 bronze spheres for the City of Montreal’s Rue Peel project, which will officially launch in spring 2024.