Gallery Development

Our ten new permanent diorama exhibits are nearing completion. They reflect the stories of the people and land of the Northwest Territories and feature museum’s collections.

Each new exhibit includes…

• Realistic scenes from across ten different regions of the NWT
• People’s stories are told about the landscapes, cultures and animals to create stories for all visitors.

What about those background photos?

Photomurals show different seasons and the diversity of northern landscapes across the many regions of the NWT.

Each photomural is composed of at over 60 individual photos meticulously stitched together.

Murals were printed in sections and carefully applied to walls and platforms (like plastic sticky wallpaper).

Ten Diorama scenes include:

• muskrats and a red fox near Aklavik in the Mackenzie Delta, in early spring
• barren-ground caribou female and calf at their northern calving grounds, in late spring
• beluga whale female and calf in the Beaufort Sea, in early summer
• muskox male of the tundra on Banks Island during the autumn breeding season
• polar bear and arctic fox on Beaufort Delta winter sea ice, in winter
• waterfowl of the Slave River Delta, near Fort Resolution during spring migration
• bald eagle near Reliance in the East Arm of Great Slave Lake, Thaidene Nene, in summer
• male moose of the Mackenzie River wetlands near Willow lake River, in autumn
• whitefish and other fish species of Great Bear Lake, at Deerpass Bay in early spring
• Dall’s sheep and arctic ground squirrels in the Mackenzie Mountains, in autumn

Stop in to see the progress that the exhibit design team is making!

Exhibit Goals

• Convey cultural and natural history in an exciting, meaningful, and educational manner, to create interest and understanding  of the environmental and cultural diversity of the Northwest Territories.
• Involve Northerners in the telling of their own stories and to promote official languages of the NWT.
• Foster a sense of connection between visitors and life in the Northwest Territories (historical, contemporary, and future).
• Display museum objects and archival and materials from the collections of the Northern Heritage Centre.

Partnerships – Working with communities and other organizations

These exhibits are being developed in consultation with Northwest Territories communities, cultural and scientific advisors, researchers, GWNT departments, and other organizations.