Media
NOVEMBER 2022
Taapwaywin – Episode 3: Preservation, Destruction, Transformation
In this episode, Ry Moran talks with Carey Newman, Oliver Schmidtke, and Tavia Panton about sites with difficult histories in Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom and what to do with them.
OCTOBER 2022
The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers
From The Archives: Carey Newman and Kristie Hudson on Picking up the Pieces. We revisit Shelagh Roger’s interview with Carey Newman & Kristie Hudson on their book, Picking up the Pieces.
JAN 2022
Pitt Rivers Museum Podcast – Social and Cultural Lives of Objects
Megan and Alexis are joined by master carver Carey Newman to discuss the social and cultural lives of museum objects, and the ways museums can better engage with them.
JUNE 2018
Check the Program: Episode 4
Arts and culture in Victoria, BC. Hosted by Sarah Petrescu, John Threlfall, Melanie Tromp Hoover, Amanda Farrell-Low, Brianna Bock and Tim Ford.
FEBRUARY 2018
The Roundtable Podcast – Podcast 95: “Indigenous, Canadian, Indigenous-Canadian, or…” How do you Identify
Hosted by Wayne K. Spear with guests Chelsea Vowel, Brooke Torgerson, Carey Newman, Conrad Saulis, Doug Jarvis, Karen Lawford, and Nahnda Garlow
OCTOBER 2018
‘Witness Blanket’ recalls tragic chapter of Canadian Indigenous history
To create a dialogue and an awareness of residential schools, Indigenous artist Carey Newman has coordinated and produced an ambitious project called the “Witness Blanket” that incorporates pieces of the residential schools and other artifacts into a 40-foot installation.
MAY 2025
Artist Talk with Carey Newman- Hayalthkin’geme
Listen in as artist Carey Newman—Hayalthkin’geme discusses ka’yasu’/ne’nakw [Driven Away/Returning Home], an exhibition that explores the lasting connections between land, history, and Indigenous communities. Through vivid imagery and layered meaning, Newman’s work examines what remains unseen and the presence of culture and knowledge across generations.
MAY 2025
Interview with Carey Newman-Hayalthkin’geme
What is present in absence? What is absent in presence?
A shadow is formed by the presence of a form disrupting light. Paint, cracked and faded, conveys the presence of sunlight, weather, and the passage of time. An empty pedestal suggests the absence of a statue… but was it torn down, removed for repairs, or is it yet to be installed? Do freshly plowed fields indicate the absence of crops or signal fresh crops to come? And what becomes of the forests, animals, and grasslands displaced by agriculture?
SEPTEMBER 2022
New website allows users to explore Indigenous artwork
The Witness Blanket, an installation comprised of more than 800 items reclaimed from residential schools, is now available to view online. The artist behind the project, Carey Newman, explains why it’s so important the work of art is now more accessible.
SEPTEMBER 2022
Carey Newman: Indigenous Artist, Master Carver, Creator of the Witness Blanket
An interview with Carey Newman with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation discussing the creation of the Witness Blanket.
AUGUST 2022
Interview with Carey Newman from Still Standing: Ancient Forest Futures
Carey Newman, Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw artist, shares his perspective on land bank and his vision for sustainable totem carving. Exhibition on from June 25th – September 17th 2022.
FEBRUARY 2022
Carey Newman Artist Talk
Carey Newman, whose traditional name is Hayalthkin’geme, is a Kwakwaka’wakw and Sto:lo multi-disciplinary artist, master carver, scholar, filmmaker, author, and public speaker. During this hour-long live Zoom webinar, he will share images and video, along with personal insights into the process of creating the Witness Blanket.
NOVEMBER 2021
All My Relations by Carey Newman – Hayalthkin’geme
Kwakwak’awakw artist Carey Newman speaks about his approach to both reconciliation and a new installation featured at the entrance to Royal Roads University’s recently renovated Dogwood Auditorium. The front entrance features stainless steel panels titled “All My Relations.” The concept means to live in good relations with the land, air, water and spirit world and was proposed by Royal Roads Director of Indigenous Relations Asma-na-hi Antoine.
JULY 2021
Telus Talks: Confronting the legacy of residential schools: Carey Newman
The son of a residential school survivor, artist and master carver Carey Newman has spent the past decade working on The Witness Blanket, an art installation created with artifacts gathered from Indigenous communities across the country that have been affected by Canada’s dark legacy of the residential school system. In this episode, he speaks about his process of creating the piece, the profound impact of bearing witness to the stories of survivors, and why we need truth before we can achieve reconciliation.
MAY 2020
Good Company with Shelagh Rogers, with guest Carey Newman
The University of Victoria Chancellor chats with Carey Newman about reconciliation and creating art that makes people consider themselves differently.
Carey is a UVic Audain Professor, multi-disciplinary Indigenous artist, master carver, filmmaker, author and public speaker.
JANUARY 2020
APTN Face to Face
Master carver feels “immense responsibility” to the Witness Blanket.JUNE 2017
‘This piece is a record of the truth’: the Witness Blanket art installation
Carey Newman talks about the Witness Blanket and the importance of truth before reconciliation.
DECEMBER 2015
Artist Carey Newman shares his inspiration for the Witness Blanket
Master carver feels “immense responsibility” to the Witness Blanket.
SEPTEMBER 2024
Witness Blanket finds permanent home as human rights museum celebrates 10th anniversary
APTN News
The Witness Blanket, a commemoration piece that was produced as part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) now has a permanent home in Winnipeg.
JULY 2024
Nelson Museum presents The Witness Blanket
Nelson Star
The Nelson Museum, Archives & Gallery (NMAG) is honoured to exhibit a replicated portion of The Witness Blanket, on tour from the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg. Inspired by a woven blanket, Witness Blanket is a large-scale work of art created by master carver Carey Newman, containing hundreds of items reclaimed from residential schools, churches, government buildings, and traditional and cultural structures from across Canada.
JUNE 2024
Witness Blanket brings stories of Indigenous resilience to Stauffer Library
Queens Journal
A symbol of resilience and reconciliation, the Witness Blanket invites everyone to bear witness and learn the historical importance it holds to ensure it is not forgotten.
Queen’s University hosted the Witness Blanket, a significant large-scale art piece on loan from Canada’s Museum of Human Rights. Representing Indigenous resilience and ongoing reconciliation efforts, the Witness Blanket was displayed in the Fireplace Reading Room on the second floor of Stauffer Library from early April to early June.
APRIL 2024
The Witness Blanket exhibit now open at Stauffer Library
Kingstonist
Stauffer Library at Queen’s University is hosting the Witness Blanket, a large-scale wooden art installation inspired by a woven blanket and created by master carver Carey Newman or Hayalthkin-geme (Ha-yalth-kingeme).
JANUARY 2024
Thought-provoking residential school exhibit on display at Canadore College
CTV News
For the next few weeks, The Village at Canadore College will be the home of a thought-provoking museum exhibit that tells the story of Canada’s troubled history with residential schools.
The exhibit is called ‘The Witness Blanket.’
JANUARY 2024
Travelling Witness Blanket artwork on display at West Vancouver library
North Shore News
One photograph shows a row of forlorn young girls standing in front of St Paul’s residential school in North Vancouver. Nearby, a vibrant Métis sash hangs. Above that, a selection of bricks taken from the edifices of residential schools across the country sit stacked upon one another. And in the centre, a wooden door that was once a gateway to a B.C. residential school’s infirmary.
JANUARY 2024
Master carver Carey Newman’s monumental Witness Blanket tours to the West Vancouver Memorial Library
Stir
AN INFIRMARY DOOR that was once a part of St. Michael’s Residential School in Alert Bay is now the focal point of master carver Carey Newman’s large-scale art piece Witness Blanket—and surrounding it are nearly 900 other objects reclaimed from residential schools, survivors, churches, government buildings, and cultural sites across Canada.
JANUARY 2024
B.C. artist Carey Newman-Hayalthkin’geme’s Witness Blanket on display in West Vancouver
Vancouver Sun
The West Vancouver Memorial Library will be home to Victoria artist Carey Newman-Hayalthkin’geme‘s monumental and important art piece Witness Blanket for a limited time. On display for six weeks, beginning Jan. 26, the woven-blanket-inspired piece is made up of items collected from residential schools, survivors, churches, governments and other cultural sites across Canada. Measuring 40 feet long, the installation is immense in size and subject matter.
NOVEMBER 2023
Witness Blanket featuring reclaimed residential school items arrives in Williams Lake
The Williams Lake Tribune
The Witness Blanket travelling exhibit has arrived at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) in Williams Lake and features over 800 reclaimed items from residential schools. Inspired by the woven blanket, the Witness Blanket was made by Indigenous artist Hayalthkin’geme (Carey Newman) to honour residential school survivors. For Indigenous people across Canada, blankets symbolize protection and comfort and are worn in ceremonies and given as gifts, according to the Witness Blanket’s website.
SEPTEMBER 2023
Witness Blanket art exhibit for Williams Lake delayed due to wildfires
The Williams Lake Tribune
The Witness Blanket art exhibit scheduled to be in Williams Lake at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) for Orange Shirt Day has been delayed. The exhibit was trapped in Fort Smith due to wildfires in that area this summer, and with residents only recently being allowed back in, shipping of the exhibit to Williams Lake is not expected until after Orange Shirt Day events Sept. 30. Instead the exhibit is now expected to be in Williams Lake for its debut in late October or early November.
SEPTEMBER 2023
The Witness Blanket among titles shortlisted for Canada’s biggest children’s book awards
CBC Books
The seven awards, which include prizes for nonfiction, YA and picture books, annually recognize the best in Canadian children’s literature.
The book, which was put together by Carey Newman and Kirstie Hudson is a finalist for both the $50,000 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, which recognizes the best Canadian book for readers up to age 12 in any genre, and the $10,000 Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction.
AUGUST 2023
TRU Williams Lake invites all to thought-provoking Indigenous exhibit
Black Press Media
WILLIAMS LAKE — Thompson Rivers University (TRU) Williams Lake welcomes a nationally recognized art installation to campus.
Developed by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and Indigenous artist Carey Newman, the Witness Blanket is a powerful and thought-provoking work of art that recognizes the dark and difficult legacy of residential schools in our country.
JUNE 2023
Witness Blanket artist aims to create ‘soundtrack of resilience’ using sounds from residential school survivors
Chek News
Expanding on the work from the Witness Blanket, the artist is now hoping to collect sound recordings from residential school survivors to create a “soundtrack of resilience.”
JUNE 2023
VR version of Witness Blanket needs sounds of Indigenous culture
Times Colonist
Artist Carey Newman is asking Indigenous people to contribute sounds from their cultures for a virtual reality version of the Witness Blanket, a large-scale artwork that contains items reclaimed from residential schools.
FEBRUARY 2023
Witness Blanket: Sask. Heritage Centre opens exhibit for truth and reconciliation
Global News
The Witness Blanket was unveiled at the RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina on Thursday. The travelling art piece, inspired by the original woven blanket created by artist Carey Newman, comes from the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg.
SEPTEMBER 2022
Digitized Witness Blanket invites more Canadians to bear witness to painful legacy of residential schools
Globe and Mail
There’s a collapsible stool that sits in Carey Newman’s living room on Vancouver Island, made from various pieces of wood joined together, like a folding director’s chair. It was a Christmas gift from his parents.
It’s also the object that sparked the idea for the Witness Blanket, Newman’s monumental artwork he created to honour Survivors of Canada’s residential school system.
SEPTEMBER 2022
Human rights museum chooses Vancouver to launch digital residential school initiative
CTV News Vancouver
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights has chosen Vancouver to unveil the next step in an art project offering a hard look at the atrocities inflicted upon Indigenous children at residential schools.
JANUARY 2022
Kelowna Art Gallery exhibit connects visitors to dark legacy of Indian residential schools
Global News
Standing tall at the Kelowna Art Gallery is an intricately woven blanket representing Canada’s dark past. It’s a visual representation of residential schools and the atrocities afflicted on students, called the Witness Blanket.
OCTOBER 2019
Bearing witness: Artist turns gathered objects into monument to residential school survivors
CBC Unreserved
After the Truth and Reconciliation Commission called for commemoration initiatives, Kwagiulth master carver and artist Carey Newman spent four months thinking about what he’d submit — with little success.
Newman sat in his living room, and put his feet up on a wooden stool. He knew he wanted to work with objects that represented residential schools, but he wasn’t sure how to approach the project.
OCTOBER 2019
The Witness Blanket, an installation of residential school artifacts, makes Canadian legal history
Globe and Mail
On a very rainy Wednesday in October, dozens of people – I was one of them – were called to Kumugwe, the K’omoks First Nation Bighouse. We were asked to witness a historic event taking place at the traditional community gathering place, located between Courtenay and Comox, B.C: an oral ceremony that was making Canadian legal history.
APRIL 2019
Artwork honouring residential school survivors vested with legal rights.
Canadian Press
An art installation honouring survivors of residential schools is being recognized as a “living entity” in an agreement combining Indigenous teachings and Western law.
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights and First Nations artist Carey Newman are signing an agreement Friday to be joint stewards of the “The Witness Blanket,” which is comprised of more than 800 items collected from the sites and survivors of residential schools.
MAY 2016
Witness Blanket melds 800+ residential school artifacts
Canadian Art
It likely all began with a single brick from Alberta. Now, The Witness Blanket is a huge installation built from 800-plus residential-school artifacts.
MAY 2014
Artist creates epic monument to Canada’s residential school
The Globe and Mail
Victoria artist Carey Newman has spent most of his life on the periphery of the residential schools tragedy – a generation removed, affected by his father’s experience, but knowing few details. Now, he is surrounded by it, his studio filled with pieces of the schools, witnesses to decades of atrocities.
MAY 2014
A few of the hundreds of residential schools artifacts that make up the Witness Blanket
The Globe and Mail
When part of a 13-panel art installation called Witness Blanket is revealed to the public next week by artist Carey Newman of Victoria, it will mark another healing moment for First Nations residential schools survivors and their families. Some of those families have agreed to tell their stories as they relate to personal artifacts that will be included in the art work.
MAY 2013
Carey Newman confronts the painful legacy of Residential Schools
The Globe and Mail
Growing up, Carey Newman didn’t hear much about his father’s time at residential schools, just a story about being expelled for stealing holy wine and drinking it under an apple tree.
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