CURATORIAL - Keisha Cuffie

CURATORIAL WORK

BRINGING BLACK HISTORIES IN CANADA INTO THE INSTITUTIONS THAT HOLD OUR PUBLIC MEMORY

I work with museums, galleries, and heritage organizations to research, develop, and present exhibitions that centre Black Canadian experience – past and present. My practice combines archival research, community consultation, and public programming to produce work that is both scholarly and accessible.

CURRENT & RECENT PROJECTS

PROJECT TITLE: Reclaiming Leisure: Black Life as Celebration

ROLE: Project Lead | Canadian Museum of History — Hands-On History Series

First external curator commissioned for the Canadian Museum of History’s Hands-On History series. Developed and led a program highlighting Quebec, Alberta, Ontario, and Nova Scotia, celebrating liberation and the richness of Black life in Canada. Delivered in the Canadian Museum Hall on a 5yr rotating basis 2025-2030.

PROJECT TITLE: Voices from the Past, Echoes of the Future: Black History Across Canada

ROLE: Project Lead | Digital Museums Canada

A $250,000 award producing a national digital exhibition on Black Canadian history. In development.

PROJECT TITLE: It’s Time, Reclaiming Our History

ROLE: Project Lead | Carleton EDI Research Award

Recipient of a $10,000 research award supporting work that addresses an overwhelming number of students who feel their education is lacking representation from Black Canadians.

PROJECT FOCUS: Bytown research

ROLE: Graduate Student Researcher

$TBD – Ongoing archival work on Black presence and contribution in early Ottawa, supporting future exhibition and publication. In collaboration with community engagement.

AREAS OF CURATORIAL FOCUS

Black Canadian history and heritage / community-engaged curatorial practice/ archival recovery and reinterpretation / bilingual programming / digital and hybrid exhibition formats

WORKING WITH ME

I take on curatorial commissions, guest curator engagements, exhibition consulting, and research partnerships with museums, galleries, archives, and heritage organizations. I am also available for fellowship and residency opportunities aligned with my research.

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© 2026 Keisha Cuffie. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. I acknowledge that I live and work on unceded Indigenous lands. The traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation. I stand in solidarity with these lands’ original peoples. I acknowledge the continued presence and vibrance of these Nations as well as the growing, thriving communities of urban Indigenous peoples. I remain committed to learning how to be a better steward of the land and water, and learning how to be a better neighbour.