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 EXHIBITIONS 

Current Exhibition

Current Exhibition
May 3 - October 19, 2025
The Ancestors Are Talking
Paintings by the Indigenous Seven
The Whyte is pleased to present the summer 2025 exhibition "The Ancestors are Talking – Paintings by the Indigenous Seven," curated by Joseph Sánchez. Encompassing works from the Indigenous Seven, works on display include paintings of the land and family inspired by the mountains of Jasper; views of the Boreal Forest like no other, and images of strength and resistance, which enlighten us to the natural world and ceremony. Imagination and abstraction are shared ideas in the journey of seven artists who, with their inspiration and wisdom, changed the canon of Indigenous art in Canada and continue to inspire future generations of Indigenous artists. Art, color, culture, and spirituality filled the early conversations of the Indigenous Group of Seven followed with decades of painting and activism. They created art to awaken a troubled world, with colors from the quantum reality. The Indigenous Seven include: Daphne Odjig (1919-2016), a mentor for many and master of color and story. Alex Janvier (1935-2024) whose paintings depict delicate lines and with an understanding of color and form that are otherworldly. Norval Morisseau’s (1932-2007) paintings are full of the natural world, shaman wisdom and color from the House of Invention. The spiritual interrogation of legends by Carl Ray (1943-1978), whose time with us was short, but who inspired us to look with a new understanding. The unique abstraction of Jackson Beardy (1944-1984), the sensitive portrayal of nature by Eddy Cobiness (1933-1996), and the surreal dreaming of Joseph Sánchez (b. 1948). In a braid of sweetgrass, three big strands create a braid, carrying with it the many individual blades of grass. The three retrospective exhibitions at the National Gallery by Norval, Daphne and Alex opened the door to Indigenous arts in Canada. The artistic legacy of this iconic art collective from Canada is presented through the eyes of Joseph M. Sánchez, lead curator and last living member, with The Whyte’s curators, Dawn Saunders Dahl and Christina Cuthbertson. This exhibition is supported by The Rimrock Banff, The Estate of Norval Morrisseau, and EA Studios (Jasper) Ltd.
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Norval Morrisseau. Attitude and Attention, Punk Rockers. Circa 1991. The Norval Morrisseau Estate, OfficialMorrisseau.com.

Current Exhibition
Through the Lens

Since 1997, Through the Lens has empowered hundreds of high school students from Banff, Canmore, Mînî Thnî, and beyond to explore their identities, relationships, and surroundings through the art of 35 mm film photography. Over the following two decades, the workshop evolved into a five-month program, culminating in a professional exhibition at The Whyte that celebrated student voices and perspectives. Though the original program concluded in 2017, its legacy was reignited in 2024 by alumni Nic Latulippe and Soloman Chiniquay. With support from the Wim and Nancy Pauw Foundation, they revived the program for a new generation.

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Photo by Josie Twoyoungmen. Canmore Collegiate High School, Grade 11.

Ongoing Exhibitions

Ongoing
Available Year Round
Heritage Gallery

The Heritage Gallery shares Canadian Rockies history through art, artifacts and archives and library materials. This gallery also has information on Indigenous Peoples, surveying, guiding and outfitting, travel, tourism and more!

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Upcoming Exhibitions

Opening November 1st!
Elise Rasmussen:
An Alpine Trilogy

Elise Rasmussen: An Alpine Trilogy brings together three interconnected bodies of work that resonate deeply in Banff, where mountain culture converges with narratives of conquest, grandeur, and nostalgia. Through rigorous research and lens-based media, Rasmussen recasts traditional narratives of history and nature in the Swiss Alps. In Did You Know Blue Had No Name?, she interrogates the symbolism of “blueness,” revisiting Saussure’s cyanometer, the first ascent of Mont Blanc, and early photographic struggles with blue skies. The Year Without a Summer links an 1816 climate anomaly to today’s environmental crises, weaving historical texts, folklore, and travel reflections into a meditation on cultural responses to ecological disruption. In Nostalgia: A Return to the Alps in Five Vignettes, Rasmussen examines the Alps as symbols of healing and escape, from Romantic ideals to modern wellness tourism, questioning our complex longing for harmony with nature. Together, these works reflect on visibility, memory, and the evolving relationship between humans and mountain environments.

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Previous Exhibitions

JUNE - OCTOBER 2024
J.E.H. MacDonald:
The O'Hara Era

This summer, the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies is offering a rare opportunity to view over 100 works by Group of Seven artist J.E.H. MacDonald from public and private collections. Commemorating the 100th anniversary of his first trip to Lake O'Hara, the exhibition promises to be an exceptional and unique experience, with the Whyte Museum as the sole venue. ​ The show is strengthened by original research conducted by geologists Patricia Cucman and the late Stanley Munn, who meticulously identified the exact locations of MacDonald's works, along with photographs, over the past 18 years. Their findings, documented in a major illustrated book titled To See What He Saw: J.E.H. MacDonald and the O'Hara Years 1924-1932, offer a fresh perspective on MacDonald and his work. Additionally, intriguing discoveries such as paint scrapings and teacup shards have been found in these exact locations, providing further insight into MacDonald's creative process and daily life during his time at Lake O'Hara. ​ Partnering with the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and sponsored by Masters Gallery Calgary, we invite you to join us for this breathtaking exhibition featuring mountain landscapes inspired by MacDonald. ​ ​ J.E.H. MacDonald, R.C.A. (1873-1932, Canadian) Cathedral Mountain from Opabin Pass, 1929, oil on board. Collection of the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Gift of Catharine Robb Whyte, O.C., Banff, 1979.

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