Shirley Kakfwi, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation from Old Crow, does bead looming during the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse on July 1, 2019. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News)
People gather to play a loud and exciting game of Dene hand games outside the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre during the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse on July 1, 2019. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News)
Laura Grizzlypaws performs her bear dance during the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse on July 1, 2019. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News)
Fort St. John artist Kristy Auger, from left, watches as Courtney Wheelton and Neil McGrath scrape flesh and fat off a bull moose hide during the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse on July 1, 2019. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News)
Cherish Clarke, Taku River Tlingit First Nation, left, licks the last bit of soapberry ice cream from the stand mixer beater while Annie Auston chuckles during the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse on July 1, 2019. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News)Thanks to the annual Adäka Cultural Festival, the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre has been alive with music and arts since June 28.
The seven-day festival, now in it’s ninth year, brought together people from all 14 Yukon First Nations, as well as many others from across Canada.
Marilyn Jensen, Yukon First Nations Culture and Tourism Association president, said in a statement that the festival “is a time to highlight and celebrate the rich cultures and art forms of Yukon Indigenous people and beyond.”
More than 150 Indigenous artists gathered in Whitehorse to perform, learn and share. Festival attendees were treated to performances on the main stage, traditional foods, and countless workshops.
Workshops included beading, hide tanning, glass blowing and many more. Performances included everything from dancing and drumming, to Juno award winning group, A Tribe Called Red, the evening of July 3.
