Prince George, B.C. – The  Exploration Place  has received nearly  all of the cash it  requested in an application to the Province through the B.C. Museum Association for its  new  First Nations Gallery.Exploration Place received a grant of $75 thousand dollars,   it had applied for $100 thousand.

Tracy Calogheros, CEO of exploration Place, says they are thrilled  “This funding will allow us to do an even better job of display and interpretation in this new permanent First Nation’s Gallery.”

The total budget for the Gallery was set at $195,660 with much of that made up of archival materials for display.

“We planning to spend this award primarily on the construction of the pit house recreation and the large artifact case for textiles, said museum curator Alyssa Tobin.. “We are meeting with Elders this week to discuss our plans for this project and to finalize the name for the gallery, currently we are using a working title for the gallery of K’et Hohudul’eh (the Place of Learning).”

With a steadily growing collection of materials both Lheidli T’enneh and more broadly from the Dakelh cultural group, the gallery will be an ongoing, evolving display.

“This is the first new permanent gallery at The Exploration Place since our expansion in 2001,” said Calogheros. “We make use of every square inch in our building and this project will feature a reconfiguration of the George Phillips Gallery and a reclamation of the space that has been unused since the closing of the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame Gallery.”

The Museum is NOT adding any new space to the building, rather it is another internal reorganization of space aimed at maximizing the relevant use of display and programming areas.

The visitor will step through a stylized pit house entry as they move into the space; once inside the gallery the exploration begins. “The new gallery will feature a large case for artifact exhibits, the dugout canoe that Robert Frederick and his team completed last summer, message trees, an interpretation space for a classroom of children and so much more,” added Tobin. “Being able to control the lighting levels for the protection of textiles in particular, is a great new feature of this gallery,” she said.