It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900-1970 and Now at the Dalhousie Art Gallery closes this Sunday, April 12. In honour of it all wrapping up, here’s a photo from install week in January, taken by exhibition curator Seika Boye.
So, if you haven’t seen the exhibition yet or there’s something you’d like to return to, make sure to visit the gallery this weekend!
📸 Photo by Seika Boye
#ItsAboutTime #DancingBlackCanada #DalArtGallery #BlackDanceHistory #HalifaxArts
It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900-1970 and Now is currently on view at Dalhousie Art Gallery in Halifax. As a part of the exhibition, Dalhousie Art Gallery’s on-campus book partner, King’s Co-op Books, put together a book list for the collection. This book list highlights key titles to the It’s About Time exhibition research and is a great place for those looking to learn more about Black dance histories in Canada and the forces that shaped them.
You can check out the complete reading list at the link in our bio or by visiting kingsbookstore.ca.
📸 Image Credit: Weekly dance at Conway public school. Admission 25 cents, 1951. Photo by John Collier Jr. Image courtesy of the Nova Scotia Archives. From the Alexander H. Leighton Collection, Accession 1988-413 / 4535-d
🪡 ✨ Quilting meets choreography.
In "this earth is our dancefloor and this dancefloor is our world" (2025), African Nova Scotian quiltmaker Anja Clyke transforms bold circular patterns into a choreography of colour and form.
Created in collaboration with curator Seika Boye, the quilt draws on circle formations found in many African and diasporic dance traditions.
At the centre, a glowing yellow ring represents the enduring light of the human circle, connecting histories of dance from the ring shout to the breakdance cypher. The looping arcs feel almost kinetic, paths crossing, bodies turning, communities gathering over time.
🧵 Anja Clyke, this earth is our dancefloor and this dancefloor is our world, 2025
Machine- and hand-stitched quilt
36 × 36 inches
📍 On view in It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900 -1970 and Now at Dalhousie Art Gallery
#DalhousieArtGallery
#AfricanNovaScotianArt
#BlackAtlantic
#TextileArt
#ContemporaryQuilting
#ItsAboutTime
This Thursday!
Join us for an evening of live performance and conversation as part of "It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now", curated by Dr. Seika Boye.
The night begins with a live activation by kay macdonald within their immersive installation "in this room – at the beginning of the night/at the end of the world". From there, kay will be joined by I’thandi Munro and Chris Cochrane (Elle Noir) for a panel reflecting on Black performance as lineage and living practice in Mi’kma’ki.
Movement as memory.
Preparation as ritual.
Performance as survival and celebration.
🗓 Thursday, March 5
⏰ 6:00–7:30 pm
📍 Dalhousie Art Gallery
Come early. Bring a friend.
#DalhousieArtGallery #DancingBlack #BlackPerformance #HalifaxArts #MiKmaKi #LiveArt
📷 Photo by Cody Turner
✨ Getting ready is never just getting ready.
On Thursday, March 5, join us in the gallery for an evening of performance and conversation presented as part of our current exhibition It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now curated by Dr. Seika Boye.
Halifax/Kjipuktuk-based artists kay macdonald, I’thandi Munro, and Chris Cochrane (Elle Noir) will gather to reflect on Black performance as lineage and living practice in Mi’kma’ki, exploring how movement carries memory, how artists prepare to be seen, and how performance becomes a site of community, survival, and transformation.
The event unfolds within macdonald’s immersive installation "in this room – at the beginning of the night/at the end of the world", a space layered with clothing, sound, and reflection. Here, preparation becomes ritual: an act of self-fashioning, remembrance, and readiness. The evening begins with a live activation of the installation by macdonald, marking a new iteration of the work.
We invite you to be in the space to witness, to listen, and to take part in this shared conversation.
🗓 Thursday, March 5, 2026
⏰ 6:00–7:30 pm
📍 Dalhousie Art Gallery
#DalhousieArtGallery #BlackPerformance #DancingBlack #MiKmaKi #Kjipuktuk #HalifaxArts #LiveArt #BlackArtMatters
Photo credit: Steve Farmer
#BRNBrilliance: What does innovation in dance studies look like?
A collaborative research initiative led by Seika Boye, an assistant professor, teaching stream in the Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies, is reaching outside of the academy to unite scholars, artists and communities to preserve Black performance histories in Canada 🩰
Learn more at the link in our bio or BRN News!
#UofT #BlackResearchNetwork
As we head into Valentine’s Day weekend, we’re thinking about love held in community. ❤️
These compelling photographs by Allen D. Crooks from his series Lose Yourself to Dance capture an anniversary celebration in East Preston, highlighting joy on the dance floor, enduring partnership, connection across generations, and the beauty of gathering.
Part of It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now, curated by Dr. Seika Boye, the work reminds us that love is not only romantic, but collective, historical, and embodied. 🖤
The Gallery is open this weekend on Saturday and Sunday, noon–5 PM. On view until April 12.
✨ Tomorrow Night ✨
Artist/Curator Panel for It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now. Curated by Dr. Seika Boye, the exhibition traces under-documented histories of Black dance in Canada and brings them into conversation with contemporary artists Ibe Ananaba, Anja Clyke, Allen D. Crooks, kay macdonald, and Preston Pavlis — who will be joining us in dialogue.
We’re also welcoming Dalhousie Caribbean Connection and Dalhousie’s Black Student Society for networking and gathering after the panel.
📍 MacAloney Room (Dalhousie Arts Centre, Room 406, 4th floor)
🕡 6:30 PM
🎶 Followed by a gallery gathering
All are welcome. Come move through history with us.
#ItsAboutTime #DancingBlackCanada #DalArtGallery #BlackDiaspora #Dalhousie
Join us for a special Artist/Curator Panel Discussion in conjunction with It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now
📅 Tuesday, February 10, 2026
🕕 6:30–8:00 PM
📍 MacAloney Room, Dalhousie Arts Centre, Room 406 (4th Floor)
📍 6101 University Ave, Halifax
🎟 Free and open to all
Curated by Seika Boye, It's About Time is a national touring exhibition that brings together powerful works exploring histories of Blackness and dancing, from the archive to the stage.
Alongside Dr. Boye, the panel features participating artists Ibe Ananaba, Anja Clyke, Allen D. Crooks, Preston Pavlis, and kay macdonald, who will share insights into their pieces, creative process, and perspectives on Black art and dance in Canada today.
After the panel, we invite you to visit the gallery to experience the exhibition if you haven’t visited yet.
✨ Don’t miss this chance to hear directly from the curator and artists and celebrate Black creativity and community during African Heritage Month!
🔗 Learn more about the It’s About Time project at dancingblackcanada.ca
#ItsAboutTime #BlackDanceInCanada #DalArtGallery #AHM2026 #AfricanHeritageMonth #HalifaxEvents #SupportBlackArtists
✨ Still feeling the energy last week from the Opening Night of It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now!
🪩 Thank you to all the performers, artists & guests who made it unforgettable including George Elliott Clarke, @aquakultre@studio26dance and @kaymackd
🌟 A huge thank you to our lenders, including @ns_archives@artgalleryns and our institutional collaborators including @fountainschoolofperformingarts and @dancecollectiondanse
🖤 Curated by the brilliant @seikalab and featuring Nova Scotian-based artists @ibeananaba@analogallen@anjaquilts@prestonpavlis and @kaymackd
📍 On view at Dalhousie Art Gallery until April 12
🎟️ Admission is free
📸 @codymturner / Dal Creative Studio
#itsabouttimeexhibition #blackdancecanada #dalartgallery #blackhistorymonth #contemporaryart #halifaxart #dancingblackcanada #blackdance #blackart #novascotiaartist #blackhistory #canadianhistory #canadianart
❄️ After a snow day pause, we’re back in motion…
Here’s a glimpse behind the scenes as we prepare for Thursday night’s opening of It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now, curated by Seika Boye.
From live painting and performance prep to installations in progress, these artists are bringing the gallery to life.
@ibeananaba@anjaquilts@analogallen@kaymackd@prestonpavlis@seikalab@dancingblackcanada
Join us for an evening of art, movement, and sound:
🕕 Opening Reception: Thursday, Jan 22, 6–9PM
📍 Dalhousie Art Gallery
🎤 Reading by George Elliott Clarke
💃 Performances by @kaymackd & @studio26dance
🎶 Music by @aquakultre
Free and open to all.
Come through, bring friends, and experience the energy!
Learn more about the Dancing Black in Canada Project including past exhibitions, archival materials, and artist features at dancingblackcanada.ca (link in bio)
#ItsAboutTime #DancingBlack #BehindTheScenes #BlackDanceHistory #OpeningReception #canadianart #contemporarycanadianart #canadiandance #blackdance #dancingblackcanada #btsgallery
🪩 History in motion.
This archival image of youth dancing in 1950s Nova Scotia is one of the inspirations behind "It’s About Time: Dancing Black in Canada 1900–1970 and Now" opening Thursday, January 22 at the Dalhousie Art Gallery.
Curated by Seika Boye, this nationally touring exhibition brings over 70 years of Black dance and performance history in Canada into focus, spotlighting stories long left out of dominant narratives. It asks how dance and performance hold space for memory, resistance, gathering, and self-determination, both historically and in the present.
The show features archival materials, cultural memory, and contemporary responses by five Nova Scotia–based artists including: Ibe Ananaba, Anja Clyke, Allen D. Crooks, kay macdonald and Preston Pavlis
🗓 Opening Reception
📍 Dalhousie Art Gallery, Halifax
🕕 Thursday, January 22 | 6–9 PM (remarks at 6:30 PM in the Sculpture Court)
🎤 Reading by George Elliott Clarke
💃 Performances by kay macdonald + Studio 26 Dance Co.
🎶 Music by Aquakultre
✨ Free and open to all.
Join us in honouring Black movement, memory, and creative legacies.
Image: Weekly dance at Conway public school. Admission 25 cents. (1951)
📸 Photo by John Collier Jr. Courtesy of the Nova Scotia Archives. Alexander H. Leighton Collection (1988-413/4537-d.
#ItsAboutTime #DancingBlackCanada #DalArtGallery #BlackDanceHistory #HalifaxArts #ContemporaryArt #BlackArchives #CuratedBySeikaBoye #RetroVibes
