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In 2023, Ace participated in the Les Rencontre decoloniales in La Rochelle, France with a delegation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous curators and Indigenous artists. The impetus for the Les Rencontre decoloniales project dates back to 2018, when Catherine Sicot (Elegoa Cultural Productions) was invited to La Rochelle by the Centre Intermondes for a residency. La Rochelle and its neighbouring city of Nantes (amongst others like Bordeaux) carry the legacy of modern times – major ports of commerce on the Triangle Trade – with New France, and the base of plantation owners whose lineages are still a part of the contemporary economic powers and wealth.

In view of the abundant and diverse Indigenous heritage in La Rochelle museums, the delegation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous curators and Indigenous artists were invited to the join the Les Rencontre decoloniales  project for a 10-day residency at the Centre Intermondes in January 2023. Collaborations with La Rochelle museum professionals, artists, arts organizations and the university were initiated on the understanding that Eurocentric perceptions of Indigenous identities needed to shift, and that the inventory of  traditional Heritage and knowledge needed to be made accessible to Indigenous communities. As a result of the 2023 visit, the Mobile Decolonial Do Tank (MDDT) was realized that has since developed into the Interwoven Futures (IF) collective.

In August and September 2024, Ace participated in a five-week international collaborative project with artists Olive Martin and Patrick Bernier in Nantes and La Rochelle (France). The collaborative project resulted in a new artwork entitled Bskaabwidmaagen (return something back to its owner) that is an extension of Ace’s previous work making art out of human rights standards undertaken in Canada and Switzerland addressing two key domestic and international documents: Canada’s Residential Schools’ Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s – 94 Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Bskaabwidmaagen (return something back to its owner) focuses on UNDRIP Article 12 Repatriation:

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to manifest, practise, develop and teach their spiritual and religious traditions, customs and ceremonies; the right to maintain, protect, and have access in privacy to their religious and cultural sites; the right to the use and control of their ceremonial objects; and the right to the repatriation of their human remains.

2. States shall seek to enable the access and/or repatriation of ceremonial objects and human remains in their possession through fair, transparent and effective mechanisms developed in conjunction with indigenous peoples concerned.

The upcoming November meetings, conference (the CRoyAN project) and research initiatives in Paris and La Rochelle will build on the work commenced under the MDDT/IF residencies leading up to the major de-colonial event X2027: Thank you for coming! that will feature robust Indigenous led public programming in La Rochelle and other site specific locations in France.  X2027 falls on the centenary of the major 1927 La Rochelle exhibition showcasing the impact of French colonialism.