The Scream

The Scream

2017
Artist
Kent Monkman, Swampy Cree, Fisher River First Nation, b. 1965
Born: Ontario
Work Locations: Toronto, ON
Culture
Swampy Cree | Fisher River First Nation
Country
Canada
Object
painting
Medium
Acrylic paint on canvas
Accession Number
2017.93
Credit Line
Native Arts acquisition funds, purchased with funds from Loren G. Lipson, M.D.

Kent Monkman (Fisher River Band Cree), The Scream, 2017. Acrylic paint on canvas; 84 x 132 in. Denver Art Museum: Native Arts acquisition funds and funds from Loren G. Lipson, M.D, 2017.93. © Kent Monkman

Dimensions
height: 84 in, 213.3600 cm; width: 132 in, 335.2800 cm
Department
Native Arts
Collection
Indigenous Arts of North America
This object is currently on view

This haunting scene by Kent Monkman depicts Royal Canadian Mounted Police, priests, and nuns ripping Indigenous children away from their parents to send them to residential schools. The effects of boarding schools are still felt today through physical and emotional trauma, language loss, culture change, and disruptions in the transmission of cultural knowledge. Such stories are often missing from popular narratives of governmental policies towards Indigenous peoples in both Canada and the U.S.

Known Provenance
Created by Kent Monkman, 2017; purchased by Denver Art Museum, 2017.
Exhibition History
  • "Shame & Prejudice: A Story of Resilience" at the Art Museum University of Toronto, formerly known as University of Toronto Art Centre, January 26 – March 4, 2017
  • Glenbow Museum, Calgary, June 17-September 10, 2017
  • Agnes Etherington, Kingston, January - April 2018
  • Confederation Art Centre, June-September 2018
  • Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, October-December 2018
  • McCord Montreal, TBC, January- February 2019
  • Tom Thomsoon Art Gallery, Owen Sound, Summer 2019
  • Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver, May-October 2020
  • Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, October 19-January 2020

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