Faith and Rituals: Nagar Kirtan

Sunday afternoon saw thousands of Sikh faithful come to Memorial Park for the annual Nagar Kirtan celebration. Put simply, it is a procession where the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji through a town (Nagar) with participants reciting devotional hymns (Kirtan).
I had photographed this event several years ago for my ongoing personal project on rituals of faith, and was happy to get the chance to do so again this year with a bit more knowledge of the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of the celebrations.

Sikh faithful fold their hands in a prayerful gesture of faith and respect as they walk past the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, or holy book of Sikhism.

A woman reaches her hand out to touch the cloth near the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, strewn with flowers and beneath a sheltered structure of colourful cloth.

Sikh men are silhouetted by a bright summer sun past a reflecting fountain pond in Memorial Park during the Nagar Kirtan event.

A woman plays with her grandchild as they are spotlit by a bright summer sun during the Nagar Kirtan event, Sunday afternoon in Memorial Park. The Sikh event drew thousands of faithful and other Winnipeggers.

He Ho! Let's go (Voyageur Bop)

I’m not a fan of winter - anything you can’t drive a motorcycle in just doesn’t seem like fun to me. But the one event that can sway me (other than aurora borealis) is western Canada’s biggest winter festival, the wonderful Festivalé du Voyageur.

I had the good luck to photograph this year’s festival for online news outlet ChrisD.ca — my first time at the event since 2020. Go figure, the past few years have been eventful…

My favourite way of working - just wandering, packing just a few lenses - seems to produce my favourite kinds of photographs: small decisive moments that showcase people and light. Did I mention the light? As a festival devoted to the fur trade period of c.1815, the historical re-enactments in Fort Gibraltar have period lighting, namely lantern or window. I absolutely love it.
And you will too. I highly recommend checking out the FDV in the week it has remaining! The website linked has a full schedule.

Louis Gagne twirls a carefully groomed moustache in his role as a French Canadian fur trader at Fort Gibraltar, circa 1815.

Historical re-enactors portraying soldiers hired by Lord Selkirk fire muskets during a demonstration at Whittier Park.

Dancers with the Spirit Sands Singers await the start of a powwow, helping expand the understanding of First Nations presence during the early 19th century fur trade in Manitoba.

Participants in the international snow sculpture contest help their creation take shape near the gates of Fort Gibraltar, in Winnipeg’s Whittier Park.

The currency of the early 1800’s in western Canada - furs, on display in one of the historical re-enactment displays at Festivalé du Voyageur.

Cold air and hot tea, at a display in Fort Gibraltar.

Volunteer blacksmiths work on actual iron items exactly like those needed in everyday life at Fort Gibraltar in 1815.

Winnipeg trio Sweet Alibi performs at the 2023 Festivalé du Voyageur, joining local artists providing sounds from EDM to fiddle and jig to rock.

John Kosse lights up the first night of the 2023 Festivalé du Voyageur. Kosse was one of a group of representatives from the St. Paul Minnesota winter festival attending Winnipeg’s event.

The JD Edwards Band opens the 2023 Festivalé du Voyageur.

Friends, fire, festivalé.

A perennial festival favourite is maple taffy - just add snow and roll.

Initially an accident with leaving my camera on a different setting, I really liked the impressionist effect this had, to give a mood or feeling to this timeless scene. The irony is if I deliberately set out to make a photo like this, I probably wouldn’t do as well as this one!