Honouring Our Ancestors with Xandú
At the AIRG Symposium 2025, hosted by McGill University in Montreal, the Land Connects Us team had the honour of presenting our creative and pedagogical process through the participatory exhibition “Xandú: Honouring Our Ancestors.”
The symposium brought together educators, artists, and researchers committed to participatory and arts-based research, offering a rich space for deep dialogue and knowledge exchange. Within this context, we shared Xandú, a collaborative exhibition born from intercultural dialogue between Indigenous youth in Kjipuktuk/Halifax (Canada) and Binnizá (Zapotec) youth from Unión Hidalgo, Oaxaca (Mexico).
About the Xandú Exhibition
Xandú is more than an exhibition — it is a living process of memory, storytelling, and collective creation. Rooted in ancestral practices, Day of the Dead traditions, and community-based art-making, the exhibition created spaces to reflect, honour, and reconnect with our roots.
Led by Tania Fuentes Villa — a Mexican mestiza visual designer, educator, and curator currently based in Halifax — the project included a series of workshops that activated memory and cultural identity:
- Marigold Flower Workshop – exploring cultural syncretism and symbols of remembrance
- Skull and Seed Workshop – discussing death and life cycles while connecting to the land
- Ofrenda (Altar) Workshop – creating intimate spaces to share personal and family stories
Methodology and Pedagogical Approach
Our approach blends decolonial methodologies, polyvocal narratives, and anthropologies of interculturality. We see art as an intercultural bridge — one that supports storytelling, collective learning, and mutual care.
This guiding principle echoes the words of Kanaka Maoli philosopher Manulani Aluli Meyer:
“Understanding distinctiveness leads us to appreciate how we are all the same, differently.”
This quote encapsulates the project’s core — recognizing the plurality within Indigenous communities and fostering solidarity through shared creation.
Voices from the Project
During the symposium, Anissa Peralta, Brazilian artist and research assistant for Land Connects Us, shared a deeply personal account of her connection to the exhibition:
“The Calavera and Ofrenda workshops connected me directly to my ancestry. I remembered the prayers, the food, and the caring gestures of the women in my family. Art became a portal to remember, to feel, and to resist.”
Other speakers included Joshua Schwab-Cartas, Sydney Wreaks, and artist collaborator Pedro Hernández, who contributed their insights and perspectives on community-engaged art and intercultural collaboration.
Participating in the AIRG Symposium 2025 was a meaningful milestone for Land Connects Us, reaffirming our commitment to Decolonial, inclusive, and community-rooted practices. Xandú reminds us that honouring our ancestors is also about nurturing the present and sowing seeds for the future.
We extend our gratitude to the AIRG team, McGill University, and all those who supported and engaged with us throughout this journey.
“Love is an act of resistance.” – bell hooks
Land Connects Us 
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