Exhibitions

PHYSICAL & VIRTUAL EXHIBITION

Larry Loyie: Writing is Healing

November 5, 2024 – May 23, 2025

This November, IRSHDC is proud to announce a new exhibit – Larry Loyie: Writing is Healing. Featuring a digital and physical collection of materials, this exhibit will introduce you to the life and work of Larry Loyie – a playwright, poet and author who turned to writing on his own healing journey as a Residential School Survivor. His work has opened up healing pathways and supported the education of others.

The physical exhibition will be located at the IRSHDC Gallery. It will be available to the public during our gallery’s open hours (Monday-Thursday, 12-4PM).

The digital collection will be accessible via our Collections site, which can be accessed at the link above.

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION

Our Children, Our Future: The Indian Child Caravan 40 Years Later

Coming 2024

The IRSHDC, the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC), and Chief Kukpi7 Wayne Christian and the Splatsin community are collaboratively curating an exhibition to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the Indian Child Caravan and its longstanding implications for advocacy in child welfare. The exhibition will serve to educate the public about this pivotal event in the history of Indigenous child welfare in Canada.

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION

Mistreated: The Legacy of Indian Hospitals in BC 

Coming 2026

Forthcoming exhibition funded in part by a Digital Museums of Canada Virtual Exhibits grant focusing on the history of the Indian and tuberculosis (TB) hospitals in BC. Inspired by the experiences of Survivors, this online exhibition chronicles the history of the Indian and tuberculosis (TB) hospitals in British Columbia from the 1940s to the early 1970s and ongoing implications for Indigenous communities.

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION

The Catholic Church and the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement

July 2021

With the visit of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit delegations to the Vatican, the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre has published an online exhibition about the Catholic Church and the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (2006). The exhibition includes previously unavailable files from the 2015 court case, Fontaine v Saskatchewan (Attorney General), in which the Canadian courts released the Catholic Entities from their obligations to Survivors. The exhibition features timelines of the Settlement Agreement, the 2015 Court Case and court files from the court case.

PHYSICAL EXHIBITION

Main Exhibition

June 2019 – June 2020

The Centre’s latest exhibition focuses on the Centre itself. The exhibition highlights the origins, systems, development and on-going work of the IRSHDC. Offering a different view for respectful engagement with Indigenous peoples and protocols, the exhibition explores the topics of colonial disruption, supporting spaces for Survivors. Videos from the Legacy of Hope Foundation focusing on Intergenerational Survivors are featured as well.

PHYSICAL EXHIBITION

Pride and Camaraderie

June – December 2019

This exhibition explores stories from Survivors and sport. Day-to-day experiences at residential school included fear, loneliness, trauma, abuse and at the same time could also include hope, support, resistance and respite in activities like art, music and sports. 

PHYSICAL EXHIBITION

100 years of loss: the Residential School System in Canada

April – September 2018

This educational exhibit raises awareness about the history and legacy of residential schools. In partnership with the Legacy of Hope Foundation and the Centre, 100 Years of Loss was on display in 2018 in Koerner Library at UBC.

Virtual timeline for 100 Years of Loss available via Legacy of Hope Foundation website.