Events

Creating 1812 Symposium - Commemoration, National Identity and Role of the Arts

Date:
April 23, 2010
Time:
April 23-24, 2010
Location:
City of Hamilton
Price:
$99.00 Full Symposium fee, $49.00 Partial Symposium fee
Contact:
admin@discover1812.com, 905-984-3626 Ext. 3456

The Niagara 1812 Bicentennial Legacy Council with the City of Hamilton Culture Division, the Grimsby 1812 Bicentennial Committee and representatives from Six Nations presents the 2010 symposium:

Creating 1812: Commemoration, National Identity and Role of the Arts - An examination of the impact of the War of 1812 on shaping Canadian/American/First Nations identity and how the Arts can contribute to our understanding of that impact


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THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THIS EVENT! IT WAS A GREAT SUCCESS AND WE HOPE YOU LEFT FEELING INSPIRED ABOUT 1812 AND THE ROLE OF THE ARTS!

To encourage the ongoing dialogue of the Creating 1812 Symposium we need your feedback. If you attended Saturday's workshops please take a few minutes to fill out a feedback form. Your answers will help us in planning for the future.
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Friday, April 23, 2010
Lincoln Alexander Centre in the Crowne Plaza Hamilton Hotel, 150 King St E, Hamilton
5:00pm Registration
6:00-7:00pm Reception for $99 ticket holders
7:00-9:30pm Presentations - Open to the public at no cost. Seating is on a first-come first-serve basis
  • Keynote Speaker ~ R.H. Thomson
    RH Thomson is one of Canada’s foremost actors/directors has received numerous awards over his 30 year career. In 2001, Thomson wrote and performed a highly personal play, The Lost Boys, based on letters written home by his five great-uncles who fought in WWI. Its television version delivered his second Gemini Award.

    The Vigil 1914-1918 project was a collaborative project between Thomson and world renowned lighting designer Martin Conboy. Paying homage to the 68,000 Canadians killed in the First World War, Vigil 1914-1918 involved the projection of each name, in Ottawa, on Canada’s National War Memorial, through the generous support of Veterans Affairs Canada, across Canada in several cities and, in London, on the external façade of Canada House, fronting Trafalgar Square.


  • World Premiere of “Warships Down”
    War of 1812 shipwrecks the Hamilton and the Scourge are featured in the “Warships Down” episode of History Television’s Dive Detectives Series produced by yap films.

    Dive Detectives is six-part series following father-and-son underwater explorers Mike and Warren Fletcher as they venture into the abyss to unravel gripping mysteries. In the deep, dark and frigid waters of Lake Ontario, the Dive Detectives join a massive archaeological and scientific expedition to get inside two extraordinary wooden shipwrecks for the first time in nearly 200 years. They seek answers to why so many men perished when the US schooners Hamilton and Scourge sank in a violent storm during the War of 1812.

      • Saturday, April 24, 2010
      Art Gallery of Hamilton, 123 King St W, Hamilton
      Workshops times and topics are as follows*:

      Session 1 from 9:00 am – 10:30am
      • Workshop #1 – Visual Arts
        Whose war is it anyways? Creating and recreating history through art. Visual imagery plays a significant role in the creation of our historical understanding of war. But whose visual imagery gets to tell the story? And which story does it tell? This workshop will begin to unravel the difficult questions posed by visual documents of the War of 1812 and other historical event.
        Moderator: Shirley Madill, Director of Rodman Hall Arts Centre, St. Catharines
        Presenters:
        • Todd Tremeer, Visual Artist
        Topic: Painting History/ History Painting. My “history paintings” fall short of the grand narrative tradition. Rather they are little narratives; they play with history and recall war’s representation in film, illustration and toys.
        • Jim Burant, Manager, Art and Photography Archives, Library and Archives Canada

      • Workshop #2 – Pageants, Picnics and Parade
        The War of 1812 Bicentennial will be marked with many special events. Will the passing of 200 years of peace be a celebration or a commemoration? Are the two mutually exclusive? In this session we will look back at some of the Centennial events of 1912-1914. How did they reflect aspects of regionalism or nationalism? What was the legacy of these Centennial events? As planning begins for the Bicentennial what can we learn from the commemorative activities of the past?
        Moderator: Lisa Barty, Administrator of Research and Facilities, McMaster University
        Topic: The "Other" Battle of Stoney Creek - the formation of the Women's Wentworth Historical Association and the building of the Stoney Creek Monument.
        Presenters:
        • John G. Johnston, Project Coordinator, Fort Erie 1812 Bicentennial Committee
        Topic: How Canadians should see the War of 1812 and how we should celebrate it.
        • Keith Jamieson, Director, Niagara 1812 Bicentennial Legacy Council and Adjunct Professor, Indigenous and Contemporary Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University
        Topic: History of Lacrosse



          • Session 2 from 10:45 am – 12:15pm
          • Workshop #3 - The Documentary and Shorts
            Workshop will examine American and Canadian documentaries of the War of 1812, preview the new WNED-TV documentary entitled “The War of 1812” and “Rural Raids and Divided Loyalties” a film commemorating the lesser known stories from Ontario. Discussion will also include the importance of preserving the Six Nations involvement, events, projects and views regarding the last 200 years.
            Moderator: Brian Purdy, Grimsby 1812 Committee
            Presenters:
            • David Rotterman, VP Television Production, WNED-TV
            Topic: Documentaries on the War of 1812
            • Zachary Melnick, Director - Ontario Visual Heritage Project, Owner - Lock3 Media
            Topic: Zach will discuss his current project "Rural Raids and Divided Loyalties - Southwestern Ontario and the War of 1812", why it's important to commemorate the small stories along the the big ones, and how low-cost documentary production can be used as a community building and tourism tool.
            • David Moses, The DAM Studio

          • Workshop #4 - Drama: “the play’s the thing”
            Moderator: Ronald Weihs, Artistic Director, Artwood Theatre
            Presenters:
            • Judith Sandiford, Managing Director, Artword Theatre
            Topic: The Play's The Thing
            • Wendy Elliott, writer, and Steve Pratt, composer, of “Manifest Destiny” an 1812 Musical
            Topic: Manifest Destiny: A musical about drive, ambition, honour and duty, war and peace, love and death, and the beginning of a nation
            • Eva Nicklas, Artistic Director, and Timothy P. Henderson, Author, Lewiston Council on the Arts
            Topic: The Marble Orchard 1812. Through extensive research, the Henderson/Nicklas team has collaborated to bring Lewiston’s history to life in popular historical walking tours, plays and musical programs in the “Marble Orchard".


              • Session 3 from 1:45 am – 3:15pm
              • Workshop #5 - Monuments and Statuary
                Over the last two centuries, a significant number of monuments to the War of 1812 have been erected on battlefields, town squares and parks. What did the monuments mean to those who struggled to put the project together? What would a similar project produce today? Is there a future for monuments and statues to the events and figures of the War of 1812?
                Moderator: Ian Kerr-Wilson M.A. M.M.St., Manager of Museums and Heritage Presentation, City of Hamilton
                Presenters:
                • Ron Dale, War of 1812 Project Manager, Parks Canada
                • Lee Simonson, Historical Association of Lewiston, NY
                Topic: Tuscarora Heroes Monument
                •Lisa Gilbert
                • Keith Jamieson
                Topic: Six Nations Concepts of Commemmoration
                • Richard D. Merritt, Niagara-on-the-Lake War of 1812 Bicentennial Committee

              • Workshop #6 - Briefing and Dialogue
                Exploring commissioning opportunities for artists related to 1812 themes
                Moderator: Debbie Whitehouse, Chair, Niagara 1812 Bicentennial Legacy Council
                Presenters:
                • Canadian Heritage Field Office, Toronto: Relevant Canadian Heritage funding programs
                • Sandra Shaul, Fort York and Toronto Arts Council and Claire Hopkinson, Executive Director, Toronto Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Foundation
                Topic: Funding mechanisms and opportunities for public art in the City of Toronto
                • Terri Donia, Project Manager for Niagara Region Integrated Community Planning
                Topic: Public art in the Niagara Region
                • Ken Coit, Art in Public Spaces Coordinator
                Topic: Funding mechanisms and opportunities for public art in the City of Hamilton


              • Workshop #7 - Exhibits and Material Heritage: Touching our History
                Reading about history is interesting, but interacting with artifacts from the event brings the experience up close and personal. Join our experts as they present pieces of material heritage surrounding the War of 1812.
                Moderator: Herb Bond, Publisher and Editor, “The Upper Canadian Antique Showcase”
                Presenter:
                • David Sharron, Head of Special Collection and Archives, James A. Gibson Library, Brock University and www.1812history.com partner
                •Tom Russell, Historian
                •Rick Hill, Cultural History teacher, Six Nations Polytechnic in Ohsweken, Coordinator for the Joint Stewardship Board to develop an interpretive program for the Red Hill Valley, formerly Assistant Director for Public Programs at the National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, DC.

                  • Session 4 from 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm
                  • Workshop #8 - The role of landscape in creating and recreating places of pilgrimage
                    Moderator: Paula Berketo, Landscape Architect, City of St. Catharines
                    Presenters:
                    • Mike Ripmeester, Professor of Geography, Brock University
                    • David O’Hara, Museum Administrator, Fort York
                    • Patrick Kavanagh, Researcher, Forest Lawn Cemetery
                    •Virginia Burt, Landscape Architect, Visionscapes Landscape Architects Inc.


                  • Workshop #9 - Music & Interpreting History: Striking the Right Note
                    Music can be a powerful tool in interpreting our past. It may involve “period” examples from early written sources. It can also take in the popular music of one era that survives to become the traditional folk of another, and even newly composed works created to give a contemporary view of past events. This seminar will examine the potential for the uses of all three strains.
                    Moderator: Ian Bell, Curator/Director, Port Dover Harbour Museum
                    Presenters:
                    • Nick Baxter-Moore, Associate Professor, Brock University
                    Topic: (Un)Sung Heroes: Recording Alternative Histories
                    • Ronald G. Vigue, Executive Director, Orchestra 2001
                    • Peter Alexander, Historic Music Coordinator, Fort George NHS
                    Topic: Military and Social Music during the War of 1812


                    • Workshop #10 Living History: The acting in re-enacting The goal of the workshop is to examine the reason behind reenactment, the acting involved, artistry and aesthetics; the notion that blending acting with historical accuracy can create a good story that is correct, potentially provocative and entertaining; what should be emphasized in ones interpretation of the past in order to get ones point across to a modern audience, commemoration of events / personages and the shaping of national identity.
                      Moderator: Michael McAllister, Coordinator: Hamilton Military Museum, Hamilton & Scourge National Historic Site of Canada
                      Presenters:
                      • Craig Williams
                      • Zig Misiak
                      Topic: History & Reenacting, relationships with Six Nations past and present
                      • Ray Hobbes
                      Topic: History and Heritage: Partners or Combatants
                      • Susan Spencer
                      Topic: Real history vs. "History Lite": What's the difference, and why does it matter?

                      • *Workshop topics, times and presenters are subject to change


                      More details regarding the program will be released soon.

                      For more information, or to register for this event please contact the Legacy Council at admin@discover1812.com or 905-984-3626 Ext. 3456

                      Click here to view an area map.

                      Accommodation information:
                      The Crowne Plaza Hamilton Hotel is offering Symposium registrants a reduced rate of $109 on reservations made before March 23, 2010. Please contact the Crowne Plaza Hamilton Hotel at 905-528-3451. A full list of accommodations in the Hamilton area is available at www.tourismhamilton.ca

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