N'Swakamok, Sudbury police to unveil MMIW sculpture

It's a heart-wrenching topic, but artist Kathryn Corbiere says she's honoured to have been asked to create a sculpture that reflects and explores themes around missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW) on Red Dress Day, May 5, in Sudbury. 

Greater Sudbury Police Services and N'Swakamok Native Friendship Centre plan to reveal a sculpture by the M'Chigeeng First Nation artist at the centre, which will be visible from Elm Street, a main throughfare through the city's core.

"It's a really tough topic, and when you get asked to make a sculpture that's kind of directed at [MMIW], it's a hard thing to encompass in one piece of art," Corbiere said.

"Obviously, you want to make something that's literal and says something," she said. "But I also wanted to hear the families' opinions on what they would like to see in the city."

Red Dress Day, held annually to commemorate murdered and missing Indigenous women, was inspired by the work of Métis artist Jaime Black. His influential installation at the University of Winnipeg in 2010 featured a series of red dresses, representing missing women who were victims of violence, and would eventually spark the REDress Project. 

According to Statistics Canada, between 2015-20, almost a quarter of murdered women were Indigenous. 

"I want to be on board whenever there's an opportunity to engage yourself," Corbiere said. "I mean, as an Indigenous woman myself, to do projects that revolve around truth and reconciliation or MMIW or anything that's Indigenous-focused, I'm always honoured to take place in those projects."

The steel sculpture, Corbiere said, will be a red dress, prominent and visible to travelers in downtown Sudbury. Corbiere said local company Build North Construction will be helping with the installation of the piece. 

"Just being able to have a voice and show that I can create something, that I'm able to speak to on behalf of families, to show different communities that this is an issue, and this needs to come to light," she said. 

"Just to take part in it, I'm honoured."  

It will be the culmination of a year-long project, which began when Constable Daryl Rivers with GSPS approached her as part of a committee for missing and murdered Indigenous women's families in the Sudbury area.

Rivers, who helped organize the campaign with N'Swakamok, said he hopes the red dress sculpture helps spark a conversation in the community about the rates of violence against Indigenous women.

"If we hang a big red dress on the side of a building, hopefully that sparks conversations and gives other people the courage to show support to a friend or family member that may be going through certain traumatic events," Rivers said.

He added that as a police officer, it's important to offer a show of support for women in violent situations, and provide an avenue for them to step forward. 

"This will let them know that we're here, and then give them the strength to come forward to allow us as police to do what we need to do to investigate and hold people accountable for their actions," Rivers said.

"But we can't do anything without somebody coming forward," he said. 

Corbiere's project will be revealed Thursday, 2:00 pm at the N'Swakamok Friendship Centre in Sudbury.