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February 25, 2009 - Artist driven by injustice to former Woodlands residents
An art exhibit exploring the former cemetery at Woodlands School is about returning the identities of the deceased to them and their families, says artist Michael de Courcy.
“There are no surviving photos of the burials at Woodlands. It was literally out of sight, out of mind,” says the creator of Dead and Buried: The Cemetery at Woodlands, a multimedia exhibit opening at the Amelia Douglas Gallery on March 5.
The featured work of art is a remapping of the Woodlands cemetery, indicating where each person was buried in relation to the existing Woodlands Memorial Garden, which opened in 2007.
“I’m trying to resolve unfinished business. With the Memorial Garden, the cemetery now looks like a park. I’m trying to give a sense of the scale of it. Over 36 years, there were two to three burials a week,” says de Courcy.
The most unnerving piece may be a recreation of the notorious Woodlands staff barbecue patio, which was built using gravestones of the deceased in the 1970s. de Courcy has cast replicas using concrete and carefully chosen names to engrave on select stones, including Nora Lyas and W. Bennett, the first and last residents buried respectively. A barbecue will top the stones.
“I was driven by what I perceive as a great injustice served upon those who were buried when their last vestiges of notoriety, their grave markers, were unceremoniously removed and disposed of,” says de Courcy.
In 1878, the provincial government opened the Provincial Asylum for the Insane. It was renamed Woodlands School in 1950 and operated as such until 1996. As Woodlands, its residents ranged from individuals diagnosed with physical and developmental disabilities, to those with behavioural challenges deemed inappropriate by society, to wards of the province. Woodlands survivors say physical and sexual abuse by staff was rampant. A class action suit against the provincial government is currently on hold.
de Courcy, a long-time resident of New Westminster, began researching the former residential school in 2001, when the province announced it was selling the Woodlands site for redevelopment. He first explored Woodlands in a 2003 exhibit titled Asylum: A Long Last Look at Woodlands.
Dead and Buried kicks off a series of events exploring the lasting impact of institutionalization on individuals and families across BC, along with the social and historic relevance of institutions. All the events take place at Douglas College in March as part of the Woodlands Project.
Asylum, a seven-minute documentary by Douglas Criminology instructor Heidi Currie and filmmaker Lisa G., will be screened on March 12. In the film, a nurse recalls working at Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam from 1949-1950, particularly her lesbian patients who she realized were far from mentally ill, but were considered to be at the time. A discussion will follow the screening.
A fictional play Imperfect, inspired by the Woodlands School and other institutions, is being staged from March 20-28. Playwright Mary Burns says it unveils what can happen when those considered imperfect are hidden away.
Our Story, a panel of former Woodlands residents, their families, a former employee and Douglas academics, takes place on March 27.
Dead and Buried: The Cemetery at Woodlands is being exhibited until April 4 at the Amelia Douglas Gallery at the New Westminster Campus of Douglas College, 700 Royal Ave, 4th floor. There is an opening reception on March 5, 4:30-7:30pm. de Courcy will be giving an artist’s talk on March 6 at 10am, room 1614 at the New Westminster Campus. Admission to the exhibit, reception and artist’s talk are free. For more information, contact 604-527-5723.
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“There are no surviving photos of the burials at Woodlands. It was literally out of sight, out of mind,” says the creator of Dead and Buried: The Cemetery at Woodlands, a multimedia exhibit opening at the Amelia Douglas Gallery on March 5.
The featured work of art is a remapping of the Woodlands cemetery, indicating where each person was buried in relation to the existing Woodlands Memorial Garden, which opened in 2007.
“I’m trying to resolve unfinished business. With the Memorial Garden, the cemetery now looks like a park. I’m trying to give a sense of the scale of it. Over 36 years, there were two to three burials a week,” says de Courcy.
The most unnerving piece may be a recreation of the notorious Woodlands staff barbecue patio, which was built using gravestones of the deceased in the 1970s. de Courcy has cast replicas using concrete and carefully chosen names to engrave on select stones, including Nora Lyas and W. Bennett, the first and last residents buried respectively. A barbecue will top the stones.
“I was driven by what I perceive as a great injustice served upon those who were buried when their last vestiges of notoriety, their grave markers, were unceremoniously removed and disposed of,” says de Courcy.
In 1878, the provincial government opened the Provincial Asylum for the Insane. It was renamed Woodlands School in 1950 and operated as such until 1996. As Woodlands, its residents ranged from individuals diagnosed with physical and developmental disabilities, to those with behavioural challenges deemed inappropriate by society, to wards of the province. Woodlands survivors say physical and sexual abuse by staff was rampant. A class action suit against the provincial government is currently on hold.
de Courcy, a long-time resident of New Westminster, began researching the former residential school in 2001, when the province announced it was selling the Woodlands site for redevelopment. He first explored Woodlands in a 2003 exhibit titled Asylum: A Long Last Look at Woodlands.
Dead and Buried kicks off a series of events exploring the lasting impact of institutionalization on individuals and families across BC, along with the social and historic relevance of institutions. All the events take place at Douglas College in March as part of the Woodlands Project.
Asylum, a seven-minute documentary by Douglas Criminology instructor Heidi Currie and filmmaker Lisa G., will be screened on March 12. In the film, a nurse recalls working at Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam from 1949-1950, particularly her lesbian patients who she realized were far from mentally ill, but were considered to be at the time. A discussion will follow the screening.
A fictional play Imperfect, inspired by the Woodlands School and other institutions, is being staged from March 20-28. Playwright Mary Burns says it unveils what can happen when those considered imperfect are hidden away.
Our Story, a panel of former Woodlands residents, their families, a former employee and Douglas academics, takes place on March 27.
Dead and Buried: The Cemetery at Woodlands is being exhibited until April 4 at the Amelia Douglas Gallery at the New Westminster Campus of Douglas College, 700 Royal Ave, 4th floor. There is an opening reception on March 5, 4:30-7:30pm. de Courcy will be giving an artist’s talk on March 6 at 10am, room 1614 at the New Westminster Campus. Admission to the exhibit, reception and artist’s talk are free. For more information, contact 604-527-5723.
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