Red Dress Art Installation Leads to Residency in France

Peterborough, ON - A community art project that began at the Peterborough Public Library has led to an international opportunity for local artist Ash Street, whose Red Dress installation has been selected as part of a prestigious artist residency in France. 

Street has been accepted into the Atelier Artist in Residency program, a two-week international residency running from February 2 to February 16, 2026 in Normandy, France. 

Created in recognition of Red Dress Day, Canada’s National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ people, the Red Dress installation invites the public to pause, reflect and bear witness to the lives lost and the voices that continue to call for justice.   

Working in partnership with the Nogojiwanong Friendship Centre, Street created the initial piece in the Downie Wenjack Legacy Space at the Peterborough Public Library. Street invited community members to fill in open spaces on the dress with donated textiles and materials on hand. The exhibit is now on display in the main foyer of City Hall, 500 George St. N. 

The residency program expressed strong interest in both the artistic merit of Street’s work and the broader community conversations it has generated, particularly around what MMIW means to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences. 

“Inviting people to share in the process and engage in conversation has been at the heart of this work. That collective experience is what carried this project forward and ultimately opened the door to sharing these stories on an international stage,” Street said. “I am grateful to the City of Peterborough and the Peterborough Public Library for offering me a space and the opportunity to create and share my work with the community. I would also like to thank Jaime Black-Morsette, a Métis artist, activist and creator of the MMIW red dress movement, who has inspired me to create the pieces I have made thus far.” 

“The Red Dress installation is a powerful reminder of our shared responsibility to honour the lives of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people, and to continue the work of listening, learning and acting,” said Mayor Jeff Leal. “By supporting this exhibit and the artist behind it, the City is helping create space for truth, reflection and community dialogue. We are proud to see a project rooted in community care and participation reach an international audience.” 

"What began as a local community-based installation at the Library has grown into a work that is now being recognized internationally. We are incredibly proud to have had the opportunity to support Ash Street at the early stages of this journey and to see this important work continue to resonate beyond our community,” said Melissa Redden, Director, Peterborough Public Library.