SPIRIT LINES NORTHERN OUTREACH PROGRAM
Spirit Lines is a book and audio project produced by the Manitoba Museum. The goal was to create an educational tool kit for use in two northern communities in Manitoba. Important oral histories were recorded in English, Cree and Oji-Cree by prominent figures from the community. Alongside the audio stories, books were designed to provide transcripts in all three languages to facilitate language teaching.
The Spirit Lines project was awarded the Governor General’s Award for Excellence in Museums: the History Alive! Award, which recognizes institutions that demonstrate excellence in the presentation, preservation, and interpretation of Canadian history.
The books for Norway House First Nation were translated and typeset in English, Cree and Oji-Cree.
Picture books accompany the Norway House textbooks. The photos are of artefacts from the museum's collection that originate from the community.
The textbooks created for Garden Hill First Nation use syllabics in the translations to facilitate language teaching.
A black and white picture book accompanies the Garden Hill textbooks. The photos are of examples of traditional carvings which are artefacts at the Manitoba Museum. A photograph of the artist accompanies each sculpture.
The Spirit Lines project was showcased at the 20th anniversary of the Interior Design Show in Toronto in 2018 which represents the best of Canadian design.