These carved glacial stones have been on a journey for thousands of years — and they’re not done yet. Ebb & Flow by Anishinaabe artist Michael Belmore (@michaelbelmore ) is a series of six sculpted glacial erratics in Ethennonnhawahstihnen’ Park at Concord Park Place, North York. Carved with fluid lines that echo water’s the effect of water on stone, they invite us to contemplate deep time, and our small place within it.
Ebb & Flow (2018)
Artist: Michael Belmore
📍Ethennonnhawahstihnen’ Park
Concord Park Place, North York, Canada
📸 by @laurarossiphotog
#publicart #michaelbelmore #anishinaabe #earthmonth #northyork
“Gathering” is a gentle word—but it holds a powerful meaning.
In The Gathering (2020), Anishinaabe sculptor Michael Belmore (@michaelbelmore ) works with glacial erratics unearthed during the construction of Concord Park Place—boulders carried here by ice thousands of years ago.
He carved them to resemble flowing water while echoing the slow erosion that shaped them long before human hands intervened.
Assembled in the park, the stones define a space where people can pause, sit, and gather.
The Gathering (2020)
Artist: Michael Belmore
📍 Concord Park Place Presentation Centre, North York, Canada
Artist Michael Belmore (@michaelbelmore ) walks us through his installation 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘪𝘳 / 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘞𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 (2025), delving into the encoded messages of the work and how it initiates a conversation with elements such as wind, water, snow, and sand.
Come visit 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 in the University of Toronto Art Centre before it closes December 20 to decode Belmore’s installation in person. Experience how artists reimagine what it means to work with and for earth through the works of Alex Jacobs-Blum (@alexjacobsblum ), Art Hunter, BUSH Gallery (@bushgallery ), Edward Poitras, Faye HeavyShield, Lisa Myers (@liiiisamy ), Michael Belmore, Mike MacDonald, and Protect the Tract Collective (@protectthetract ).
Continue your encounter with 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬’s themes by visiting Belmore’s outdoor snow fence installation, 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘵 (2025), which will be on view on King’s College Circle until March 2026. Visit in the winter and see firsthand how it speaks with the wind and the snow.
🎟️ Free admission and open to the public.
🔗 Link in bio to plan your visit.
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Videography: Miles Rufelds.
📢 Update ‼️
We're sorry to share that Michael Belmore's talk has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.
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📣An Artist Talk by ✨Michael Belmore
🗓️Thursday, November 27, 2025
🕧5–6:30 pm
👥In-person
We are truly honored to present a public talk by Michael Belmore, an accomplished artist whose work is in conversation with the natural environment, capturing liminal spaces between earth, body, and time. His work speaks to Anishnaabe identity and positionality, often using reflection and composition to create visual tensions between elementary materials. Natural and oxidized copper are Belmore’s colour pallet from which he pushes our perceptions of nature and land, turning stones into water, metal into light, and time into colour.
This public talk is on the occasion of our current exhibition Standing in the room together, featuring works by Belmore, Bob Boyer, Jack Bush, Ehdward Poitras, and Tariku Shiferaw. The exhibition was conceived through a conversation between Belmore and curator Lillian O’Brien Davis in relation to York University’s art collection. It brings together unlikely pairings of works and artists, beginning with the throughline of modernist abstraction in the University’s art collection and transforming into a narrative around Belmore’s history and influences as an artist.
📸Slide 2: Michael Belmore “turbulent air- turbulent water, 2024. Patinated copper
Have you spotted the new sculpture on King’s College Circle at @uoft ? 👀
The new work, 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘵, is by internationally recognized GTA-based Anishinaabe artist Michael Belmore (@michaelbelmore ). Created for the Art Museum’s current exhibition 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬, the temporary art installation is an exploration of the structure of snow fencing, continuing Belmore’s ongoing exploration of land, water, and the environment.
Join us on Thursday, November 13 for a launch reception with the artist as part of the Mounds & Memory symposium! Hear Michael Belmore introduce 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘵 and share insights into his process, materials, and interests as an artist deeply engaged with the natural world.
Launch Reception: Michael Belmore’s 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘵
📆 Thursday, November 13
🕒 2pm–3pm
📍 Outdoors at King’s College Circle
🎟️ Free and open to the public! Registration is recommended, not required.
🔗 Visit the Mounds & Memory link in bio for the full details!
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📸 Images: Installation view: Michael Belmore, drift, 2025, in Earthwork, curated by Mikinaak Migwans. Photos: Micah Donovan.
Join Lisa Myers (@liiiisamy ), Michael Belmore (@michaelbelmore ), and Art Hunter—three artists featured in the exhibition 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬—as they discuss their practices and reflect on how their works engage with the idea of "Earth work."
Moderated by curator Mikinaak Migwans (@mxmigwans ), this panel considers a range of powerful interventions across sculpture, photography, performance, and land-based practices outside of the gallery frame made from Indigenous perspectives.
Artist Panel: The Practice of Earthwork
📆 Thursday, November 13
🕒 4pm–6pm
📍 Seeley Hall, Trinity College
Followed by a public reception in 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 at the University of Toronto Art Centre from 6pm–8pm.
🎟️ Free and open to the public. Registration is required.
🔗 Visit the Mounds & Memory page on the link in bio for more info.
This artist panel is part of the Mounds & Memory symposium, presented in conjunction with 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬, and developed in partnership with the Mounds & Memory Project.
Learn more about the panelists below ⤵️ Full bios on the Art Museum website.
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📸 Image: Lisa Myers’ visit to Richard Serra’s Shift. Photo by Mikinaak Migwans.
