Still Here: Contemporary Art and family history in and of Black New Brunswick

The Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art invites you to a conversation about Black art and the histories of Black presence in New Brunswick. Joana Joachim will introduce her recently installed exhibition Estuaries. Graham Nickerson will argue for reconceptualizing Black agency in the archives. We will learn about the Still Here Initiative, a collective project led by spoken-word poet and writer Thandiwe MacCarthy and photographer Gary Weekes, that celebrates fifteen Black New Brunswick families through photography, oral history, and archival documents. These researchers and cultural workers are drawing our attention to the rich, multigenerational history of Black families in Atlantic Canada by making their narratives visible to wide audiences. Our speakers will be Joana Joachim (Concordia University), Thandiwe McCarthy, Gary Weekes, and Graham Nickerson (University of New Brunswick), with a special guest appearance by Mary McCarthy, executive director of REACH (Remembering Each African Cemetery’s History in NB). Martha Langford (Concordia University) will moderate the discussion.

All are welcome to this exciting event.

Joana Joachim is Assistant Professor of Black Studies in Art History and Social Justice at Concordia University. Her research and teaching interests include Black feminist art histories, Black diasporic art histories, Black Canadian studies, and Canadian slavery studies. Her recent curatorial projects include Estuaries presented at the Owens Art Gallery (2024) and Blackity presented at Artexte (2021). 

Thandiwe McCarthy, a 7th-generation African Canadian spoken word poet and writer, began focusing on his writing after a residency at Arteles, Finland. As culture correspondent for Maritime EDIT, he spotlights Black community leaders and artists. Honored in 2023 as a CBC Atlantic Canadian Black Changemaker, he has also helped establish Emancipation Day on August 1st in New Brunswick. Thandiwe has delivered keynotes for the Atlantic Public Libraries Association, the NB College of Craft and Design, and lectured on leadership at Saint Thomas University. His Canada Council-funded Still Here Initiative celebrates fifteen Black New Brunswick families and launches in July 2025 with a national exhibition at Beaverbrook Art Gallery and a book by Goose Lane Editions. 

Graham Nickerson is a multidisciplinary Black historian. In his previous life, he focused on underwater archeology and contributed to discovering and mapping several important cultural heritage sites. Graham also works tirelessly within the Black community as a member of the New Brunswick Black History Society, The Tomlinson Lake Hike to Freedom, and the Black Loyalist Heritage Society. Graham is currently working on his PhD titled, “To Be Made Majesties Of,” a study on the evolution of Black Loyalist Society. Graham is also a producer on the Loyalist Connections Podcast, which studies the throughlines of Black African Nova Scotian communities. Graham garnered recognition from the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission, which named him a future leader in 2022. 

Gary Weekes’ Fine Art Photography celebrates his birthplace in England, his ten years spent in the USA, and his Black identity in Canada. He stands proudly as a creative individual who does not follow the stereotypical boundaries placed on Black artists. His art reflects himself; his likes, dislikes, loves, hates, and his ability (or inability) to initiate dialogue. In 2022, Gary became the first Black NB Artist to have a Solo Show at the prestigious Beaverbrook Art Gallery, later having one of his works purchased as part of their Permanent Collection. In 2023 Gary received The CBC Black Changemaker Award for his Community Work. He now includes Short Documentary Filmmaking – with Cinematography/Directorial Credits – added to his increasing list of accomplishments. 

Martha Langford is the Research Chair and Director of the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art and a Distinguished University Research Professor in the Department of Art History at Concordia University in Montreal. She is currently writing a three-volume history of photography in Canada (1839–2000).

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The Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art  presents a series of conversations entitled Afternoons at the Institute, now in its tenth season. Bringing established and emerging scholars together, the series focuses on pressing questions and current issues in the research and writing of art histories. The series has been made possible by a generous donation from the Jarislowsky Foundation.