On View: OCT 10, 2026 >> JAN 3, 2027
Virginia McCoy (b. 1948 – d. 2023) longed to bring her paintings home. Born in Fort William in 1948, McCoy spent most of her adult life in Cape Breton, where her artistic style grew from her desire and determination to chronicle family stories connected to Fort William First Nation and Northern Ontario. Holding Up Our Sky | Gaa’ishpinung giizhikong is a retrospective exhibition featuring more than fifty of her original paintings that have travelled from Inverness, Cape Breton, to Thunder Bay for the first time. In all her work, there is purpose in returning to yourself.
Introspective and revelatory, her paintings and drawings share stories and family histories that stretch back to the nineteenth century, including how the federal law, the Indian Act of 1876, impacted her life and her ancestors. Her works also reach forward toward self-discovery as a woman of Ojibway, French, and English ancestry in the present day. Brimming with colour, emotion, and verve, these works share a fierce love of the world and give voice to her relations – all those who endure. This exhibition is a celebration of her life and work.
