Creative Minds: Music and Storytelling with Raymond Sewell
October 29 @ 7:00 pm – 8:15 pm
Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
1723 Hollis Street, Halifax
An Evening of Music and Storytelling with Raymond Sewell
Join us for an evening with writer and artist Raymond Sewell from Pabineau First Nation joined by musicians, Elsa Jayne and Ty Messick, for a performance of original songs and responsive reflections on Kent Monkman’s monumental painting Miss Chief’s Wet Dream (2018) currently featured in the exhibition Kent Monkman: Breaking Waves.
Raymond Sewell shifts romanticized impressions of the West in his work, carving space to question the stories North America has told about itself—and to create new ones.
Admission is free from 5-9pm during BMO Free Access Thursday Nights, however registration is strongly encouraged as there are limited seats available.
American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation for this program is available by request. Please email info@agns.ca by October 15.
About the Artists and Performers
Raymond Sewell
Raymond Sewell is a Mi’kmaw writer and artist from Pabineau First Nation based in Bedford, Nova Scotia. His practise explores songwriting and performance, moving between themes of memory, history, humour and the restless mythology of North America. He has been writing and producing creative works from a young age and draws great inspiration from the ocean. Sewell is a tenured English professor at Saint Mary’s University where he focuses on topics from his work with students, community, and faculty.
Image: Nikki Lovesey
Elsa Jayne
Elsa Jayne is an Anishinaabe singer-songwriter who lives Halifax/Kjipuktuk. A multi-instrumentalist and dynamic vocalist, her songs range from folk ballads to dreamy synth-led anthems.
A proud member of Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation, Elsa grew up off-reserve in Southern Ontario, performing in the Waterloo Region and across Canada. Elsa uses her art to discover the Anishinaabemowin language of her people, often inserting simple words into her songs as a way of preserving the language and spreading literacy. Inspiration and a love for the East Coast, led Elsa and her family to settle in Halifax/ Kjipuktuk where they enjoy the beauty of the day-to-day and are grateful to live on the ancestral and traditional lands of the Mi’kmaq people.
Her latest full-length album, All My Relations, encapsulates the feelings of becoming a new mother, the pain of miscarriage, the joy of love, and the resilience of Indigenous people. The weight of these songs is offset by Elsa’s lilting melodies and whimsical songwriting sensibility.
Elsa is currently in a band called Moonii and is an active part of the music community in Kjipuktuk (Halifax).
Image: Courtesy of the artist
Ty Messick
Tyler Messick moved to Nova Scotia in 1993 from outside Philadelphia, PA. He writes songs and performs under the name Museum Pieces.
His art strives to bring attention to corporate extraction culture, wrecking our water and forests. He produced a song called “Sun’s Gonna Rise” in 2023 which talks about glyphosate spraying and gold mining affecting our health.
The Museum Pieces album “Plain Sight” from 2018, was nominated for “Roots Album of the Year” at the ECMA’s.
Image: Aaron McKenzie Fraser
Featured Image: Visitors in Kent Monkman: Breaking Waves, 2026. Photographer: Dean Casevechia.