Sa’se’wamukwa’sit/Changes
DATE: Apr 24 — Jun 13, 2026
LOCATION:
Events Events / Eltuek Exhibitions Gallery 203
Sa’se’wamukwa’sit—to change appearance, to transform. The natural world has always changed. It is changing now, under pressures of our making. These works watch closely, and ask what transformation requires of us.
A brain-tanned deerskin becomes a surface for observation and memory. It was prepared through Netukulimk—a Mi’kmaw principle of using the whole animal, taking only what is needed, leaving nothing wasted. Super 8 footage of Qalipu (Caribou), filmed in Gros Morne National Park, moves across the skin, a mirrored presence on a species which once roamed here in Mi’kma’ki but has gone locally extinct.
Apli’kmuj (Snowshoe Hare) appears mid-change. An oil-painted plaster form carries preserved fur. The seasonal moulting that allows the hare to meet winter as it comes. Not metaphor. Survival.
Plawej (Ruffed Grouse) merges with the Rock Ptarmigan, a rare arctic-alpine species. Held in sculpture and paint, this hybrid speaks of adaptation at the edges.
Across animal skin, sculpture, paint, and moving image, these works ask what it means to change in order to remain—and what the natural world is already teaching us about that.
Alex Balkam is a visual and media artist based in So’qmkiknuk, Mi’kma’ki (Shelburne, NS). Working in oil painting, sculpture, tanning, and film, his practice engages themes of place, being, and nature. His short films have been featured at major festivals across Canada, and his artwork is held in the Nova Scotia Art Bank collection.
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
OPENING NIGHT: Eltuek will host a public gallery hour on Friday, April 24th from 7-8pm, artist present. Always free and open to all.
Gallery 203 is located on the second floor of Eltuek. Open Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm and Saturdays from 9am-4pm.