Edmonton Indigenous art park named

The City of Edmonton’s Indigenous art park now has a name: ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) River Lot 11∞.

ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) is a Cree word meaning “I am of the Earth.”

River Lot 11 acknowledges the historic river lot originally home to Joseph McDonald (Métis). The park is located within Queen Elizabeth Park in Edmonton’s North Saskatchewan River Valley.

ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) is pronounced EE-NU.

ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) River Lot 11∞ will feature six artworks by Canadian Indigenous artists. The theme of the park and the artworks will be “the stories of This Place”, lending to a range of narratives or perspectives on how Indigenous peoples relate to the area, both historically and contemporarily.

Edmonton was awarded $500,000 for the Queen Elizabeth Park Phase II project in January 2017 from the federal government’s Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program.

The funding will support development of ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) River Lot 11∞, picnic area and shade shelter, interpretive signage, west access trail improvements, parking lot, and lookouts/seating along Saskatchewan Drive.

Construction of the art park and supporting amenities will start this spring. The park is expected to open to the public in the fall of 2018.

The City of Edmonton, Confederacy of Treaty No. 6 First Nations, Métis Nation of Alberta, Edmonton Arts Council and Indigenous artists have been partnering to develop the Indigenous art park to permanently exhibit Indigenous artworks since 2013, when it was approved as part of the Queen Elizabeth Park Master Plan.

The master plan establishes new and diverse public spaces to support a range of civic, recreational and gathering functions, enhancing opportunities to enjoy and experience this unique setting in the central river valley.