Home Meeting Planner Resources Create Community Connection With an Indigenous Art Tour

Create Community Connection With an Indigenous Art Tour

June 4, 2025

One cool way attendees can connect with the local community’s history and creative life is by participating in an indigenous art tour.

Attendees love to get a break with an off-site activity. Instead of the usual shopping or museum tour, why not give them the opportunity to learn about and connect with the local community’s culture, roots and art scene with an indigenous art tour? I recently had the chance to take the Zuc’min Guiding Indigenous Art Walk during a press trip to Calgary, and it gave my mind, heart and spirit a lift — as well as a much-needed chance to stretch my legs and see more of the city.

We started the tour at the historic Alexandra Centre in Inglewood, where we met our guide Wacey Little Light. Wacey, from the Siksika Nation of the Blackfoot confederacy, is an artist himself, as well as an outdoor adventure leader and a student of the martial arts and had a great laid-back vibe that meshed well with our group. We started with a mural on the wall just outside the center, which was a celebration of the confluence of the Elbow and Bow Rivers, and continued on to experience and learn about several more murals, including one by MacKenzie Brown, a Calgary based néhinaw artist who had greeted us with a traditional welcome song before our tour of the Calgary Telus Convention Centre.

Among the highlights were the gorgeous murals showcased at the Calgary Public Library — which itself was a work of art — though one of the most powerful was the shoe memorial, a tribute to the lives lost to Canada’s residential school system on the steps in front of Calgary’s municipal plaza. The art walk was about three miles in total, but it was all on paved walkways and accessible for those who may have mobility challenges.

With more than half of indigenous people now living in urban environments, many cities offer immersive opportunities to engage with Indigenous art, culture and history, often led by Indigenous guides and artists. For example, the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto offers free and paid tours exploring Indigenous cultural roots in the city, including visits to the largest collection of Canadian Indigenous artwork in Toronto, traditional language highlights, and local landmarks with deep Indigenous significance.

The Western U.S. also offers plenty of options. In Santa Fe, N.M., there is no shortage of museums, galleries and events dedicated to Native American art, such as the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts and the annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market. The Salt River Art Trail in Scottsdale, just outside Phoenix, showcases works by Pima and Maricopa artists along a self-guided route through galleries, art stores, and the Huhugam Ki Museum, all within the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Oklahoma City’s Red Earth Art Center features rotating exhibitions of Native American art and hosts the annual Red Earth Festival, which includes art shows, powwows and opportunities to meet Indigenous artists.

These cities and regions provide a range of Indigenous art tours, from urban walks and museum visits to immersive cultural and nature experiences — any one of which may be just the experience your attendees are looking for.