Exhibition draws world attention to Canada at Mexico’s centennial celebrations

Posted on: 26/11/2010

Exhibition draws world attention to Canada at Mexico’s centennial celebrations

A special exhibition from Canada has been chosen to inaugurate the Museo Nacional de las Culturas in Mexico City. The museum has been totally restored and re-opened with Canada’s exhibition as its first featured international show. First Peoples of Canada: Masterworks from the Canadian Museum of Civilization has also been featured prominently at museums in Osaka, Japan, Hannover, Germany, and Beijing, China.

“The Canadian Museum of Civilization is a national flag bearer on the global museum stage and the leading promoter of Canada’s heritage internationally,” said Dr. Victor Rabinovitch, President and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation. “The three-continent tour of First Peoples of Canada is the latest example of our leadership on the world scene on behalf of Canada.”



First Peoples of Canada highlights to foreign audiences the diversity, continuity and creativity of Canada’s First Peoples from the earliest times to the present day. It is the most comprehensive collection of Canadian Aboriginal artifacts ever to tour internationally.



The presentation in Mexico was initially arranged by Canada’s Ambassador to Mexico, Guillermo E. Rishchynski, and Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History — as a gift from Canadians to the people of Mexico in celebration of the bicentennial of Mexico’s independence and the centennial of its revolution.



“From ancient times to the present day, both Canada and Mexico have been greatly enriched by their Aboriginal cultures,” said Ambassador Rishchynski. “This exhibition from the Canadian Museum of Civilization highlights that common heritage at a significant moment in Mexico’s history.”  



A grand opening

The exhibition’s official opening in Mexico City on October 6, 2010 coincided with the grand re-opening of its venue: the Museo Nacional de las Culturas, one of Mexico’s leading cultural institutions. The museum’s historic building, constructed in the sixteenth century, had been closed to the public during major renovations.