Vancouver’s Indigenous Fashion Week returns after 2-year hiatus
Rekindling joy in the face of grief is the goal of the 2022 Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week, which is returning to the city after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19.
For its third edition, VIFW will be spotlighting 32 Indigenous fashion designers from across the continent in a series of runway shows between Nov. 28 and Dec. 1 at Queen Elizabeth theatre.
One of those designers is the week’s co-producer Himikalas or Pam Baker, who is of Dzawada'enuxw, Kwaguilth, Tlingit and Haida ancestry on her mother's side and from Squamish ancestry on her father's side.
“When the potlatch was banned, when the government decided to place our kids in residential schools, everything was to be put away,” Baker told CTV News ahead of Monday’s premier event.
“A lot of the time the masks and the regalia were confiscated, so now as designers we’re able to showcase and walk with our ancestors to bring these pieces alive,” Baker said, adding the looks will range from haute couture to ready to wear and street wear.
Under Canada’s Indian Act, the Potlatch Law came into effect in 1880, abolishing culturally significant potlatch festivals and ceremonies.
“These celebrations, which local officers and missionaries described as ‘debauchery of the worst kind’ were considered by the Deputy Superintendent-General to have ‘pernicious effects’ upon Indians,” the legislation reads.
More than a century later, a week of fashion is defying past policies of Indigenous assimilation while honouring ongoing grief.
“For the Indigenous community, the last two years have been marked by grief. We lost many cherished elders and the gruesome legacy of residential schools saturated everything, so we decided to focus this year’s VIFW on joy and celebration,” Joleen Mitton, founder and co-producer of VIFW and All My Relations Indigenous Society said in a release.
“We hope that everyone who attends will feel festive to be in community, and see us triumphant. We’ve been here since time immemorial, and we’re still here.”
Those with plans to attend the VIFW opening night, which is keeping with tradition with the Red Dress Event in honour of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and LGBTQ2S+, are being warned to prepare for an emotional evening.
“It’s for everyone who’s Indigenous and has gone missing,” said Milton, who is of Plains Cree, French and Scottish heritage. “Expect a lot of emotion, so come in with a good heart.”
Milton launched VIFW in 2017 and says she invited Baker to co-produce this years event to reflect the importance of mentorship in Indigenous culture.
“I am benefiting from her 30+ years of experience in the fashion industry, and in turn, I am honoured to continue paying-it-forward by formalizing our long-standing Mentorship Program.”
That eight-week program offers 16 Indigenous youth and youth adults a path to a career in event production with mentees to connect with Indigenous culture and ceremony through fashion.
Another program emerging from this year’s event is the Wisdom Circle, a group of Indigenous leaders from three Nations that will work to develop and maintain culturally safe and respectful events.
Throughout the week, attendees can shop for gifts from 40 Indigenous vendors and enjoy musical performances by artists including by The Wolfpack, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Soul Shakers, DJ O Show and DJ Kookum.
While the opening night promises to be full of emotion, Saturday’s closer is dubbed Supernatural Kiki Ball and described as “an extravagant evening of runway divas, sickening vogue battles, bending realness, and seductive bodies in competition for grand cash prizes.”
Tickets are available on VIFW.ca
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.