Collections & Research Staff
Kenneth Lister
Assistant Curator
Arctic, Subarctic and Native Watercraft
B.A. (Honours), Anthropology, McMaster University, 1976
M.A., Anthropology, McMaster University, 1996
Kenneth Lister joined the Department of Ethnology at the ROM in 1978. He was Head of the Department of Anthropology and is currently Assistant Curator of Anthropology in the Department of World Cultures.
Ken holds curatorial responsibility for several collections, including: Arctic, Subarctic, and Northwest Coast ethnographic collections of North America, the Native watercraft collection of canoes and kayaks, and the Paul Kane collection of sketches and oil paintings. Ken’s research work includes archaeological research in the Hudson Bay Lowland of northern Ontario, ethnographic research among the northern Ontario Cree and the Inuit of Baffin Island, and field studies relating to sites sketched by Paul Kane. The main focus of his work is oriented toward understanding the role of material culture within the context of traditional cultures.
Based upon his Arctic research, Ken curated In the Time of the Kayak: Hunting in the Eastern Canadian Arctic (February 1994 to January 1996), the inaugural exhibition in the ROM’s former Gallery of Indigenous Peoples. In addition, he was invited by the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough to curate two exhibitions based upon their kayak collection (in 1997 and 2001).
Ken is the curatorial coordinator for the Daphne Cockwell Gallery of Canada: First Peoples that opened in December 2005. He has curated and co-curated four exhibitions devoted to the work of Paul Kane. Ken also curated the Museum’s first virtual exhibition Tuugaaq-Ivory-Ivoire (2004), funded by the Virtual Museum of Canada, reworking material from his temporary exhibition Tuugaaq: Ivory Sculptures from the Eastern Canadian Arctic (October 2002 to March 2003). The most recent of his temporary exhibitions is Canada Collects: Treasures from Across the Nation (October 6, 2007 to January 6, 2008).
Ken has lectured widely for both university and public audiences on topics of traditional material culture and writes for both popular and academic publications.
Recent Publications
| 2007 | Lister, K., ed. Canada Collects: Treasures from Across the Nation. Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum. |
| 2004 | Lister, K. "‘Then the bargaining began’: Pangnirtung, the Museum, and the Dr. Jon A. Bildfell Collection." Journal of the Canadian Church Historical Society. St. Luke’s Hospital, Panniqtuuq Special Number, Vol XLVI(2): 151-168. |
| 2004 | Lister, K. “Paul Kane.” Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. Editor: D. J. Wishart. pp. 123-124. |
| 2003 | Lister, K. “Looking into the Eye of the Spider: Some thoughts about Context with Reference to Tuugaaq: Ivory Sculptures from the Eastern Canadian Arctic.” Inuit Art Quarterly 18(3): 10-17. |
| 2002 | Lister, K. “The Kayak and the Walrus.” The North American Canoe: The Living Tradition. Editor: J. Jennings. Firefly Books Ltd. pp. 120-137. |
| 2000 | Lister, K. “Paul Kane’s Romance.” Aboriginal Health, Identity and Resources. Editors: J. Oakes, R. Riewe, et al. Departments of Native Studies and Zoology, and Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Manitoba. pp. 205-216. |
Publications List (PDF opens in a new window)
Special Exhibitions
Canada Collects: Treasures from Across the Nation
Virtual Exhibitions
Tuugaaq – Ivory - Ivoire
Galleries
Daphne Cockwell Gallery of Canada: First Peoples
ROM Images
Canadian First Peoples
Canadian First Peoples: Transportation & Communication
Podcasts
Iconic Totem Poles - March 19, 2009
These four totem poles, carved by the Nisgaa and Haida peoples of Canada's Pacific Northwest Coast, commemorate family origins, rights, privileges, achievements and experiences. Standing just outside the Daphne Cockwell Gallery of Canada: First Peoples, they have been selected as one of the must-see treasures in the ROM's collection.
Video Podcast (120.4MB, 3m 02s)
Written Transcript (PDF)
Contact Information
Department of World Cultures
Royal Ontario Museum
100 Queen's Park
Toronto, ON
M5S 2C6
Fax: 416.586.5877
E-mail: World Cultures
Kenneth R. Lister. Practicing a Tununirusirmiut hunting technique with a sling. Victor Bay, northern Baffin Island. Photo by S. Qamanirq.
Resting at the entrance to the French River where paddling was hindered by low water conditions. Kaministiquia River-Dog Lake Fur Trade Route, northern Ontario. Photo by K.R. Lister.
Framework remains of an Omushkegowak askiikan, or conical lodge. Hudson Bay Lowlands, northern Ontario. Photo by K.R. Lister.
