60 The Mi’kmaq First Nations people are among the original inhabitants of Canada’s Atlantic provinces, with archaeological evidence suggesting that their traditional territory of Mi’kma’ki has been their home for thousands of years. Today, significant Mi’kmaq communities remain throughout the region, including in the provinces of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador. Ferry operator Marine Atlantic, which is mandated to operate services between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, looked to honour the history and culture of the Mi’kmaq people with its newest ship, Ala’suinu. The name means ‘traveller’ in the language of the Mi’kmaq and was chosen to represent both past and future travellers on the water. The 1,000-passenger ship, which was built by Stena RoRo as part of its line of E-Flexers, will also honour the heritage of the Mi’kmaq people by supporting Mi’kmaq artists. “We’ll display artwork by Loretta Gould, Marcus Gosse, Jerry Evans and Alan Syliboyn onboard,” says Darrell Mercer, corporate communications manager at Marine Atlantic. “It was really important to us from a truth and reconciliation perspective to recognise the traditional travel between Cape Breton and Newfoundland of the Mi’kmaq people as they visited relatives in years past. That’s why we’ve chosen the name of the ship and we’re keen to represent the Indigenous culture of our region.” From bright-coloured acrylic paintings to tribal patterns, the onboard artwork will explore themes of family, spirituality and the culture associated with Mi’kmaq people. For example, Jerry Evans’s lithography ‘Place of Life’ uses a printmaking process in which a design is drawn onto a flat stone and affixed to the stone with a chemical reaction to reflect themes related to “social amnesia, interruption and the survivance of Indigenous life and histories in what is colonially known as Newfoundland and Labrador,” according to the artist. Marine Atlantic also has eight pieces of Indigenous artwork on display at three of its ferry terminal buildings at Port aux Basques in southwestern Newfoundland, North Sydney in Nova Scotia and Argentia near Placentia, Newfoundland. “Each terminal displays several pieces of Indigenous art by artists from Mi’kma’ki and Labrador,” says Mercer. “These pieces each tell a different story of Indigenous cultures and history through INTERIOR VIEW Ala’suinu Darrell Mercer tells Alice Chambers about Marine Atlantic’s new ferry and its Indigenous background “ These pieces each tell a different story of Indigenous cultures and history through traditional and contemporary art forms” Passenger pods onboard Ala’suinu will provide privacy for guests at a lower cost
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