Image Credit: Contributed

By Victor Kaisar

Red Bridge Art Exhibition

Artists sought as Tkemlups, Kamloops Arts Council plan interactive Red Bridge exhibition

Oct 5, 2025 | 2:00 PM

KAMLOOPS – The Indigenous Resurgence Project is helping to organize an interactive art exhibition to honour the history, legacy, and the loss of the Red Bridge.

Called The DIS//CONNECT: Remembering the Red Bridge in Time, the art show – which is sponsored by the Kamloops Arts Council – is scheduled to run from Jan. 9 to Feb. 12, 2026.

“This exhibition will bring together a variety of artists from different backgrounds to reflect on the important impact this bridge has had on all of our lives through artworks and stories,” a statement from the Indigenous Resurgence Project said.

“It will also invite members of the community to engage with the same discussions in the art: what memories do you have of the bridge? What did it mean to you?”

The 88-year-old Red Bridge was destroyed by a fire on Sept. 19, 2024. While planning work on a replacement is underway, the provincial government says a conceptual design of the “preferred options” won’t be available until the spring of next year.

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Built in 1936, the Red Bridge was a load-restricted structure with vehicle lanes that measured just 2.7 metres wide, well below the standard width of 3.5 meters. It was the third wooden truss bridge that connected Lorne Street and Mount Paul Way.

The first bridge, which replaced a ferry in 1887, was destroyed by flooding in 1909. A replacement bridge that opened in 1912 was then destroyed in 1934 by fire caused by a spark from a passing paddle steamer.

“The bridge had long stood as a vital route between communities, and its destruction sparked responses of shock, grief, and feelings of disconnection,” the Indigenous Resurgence Project statement added.

Organizers of the exhibition have issued an open call to artists from all cultural backgrounds who are keen on sharing their connection with the Red Bridge. The exhibition is open to artists of all experience levels and art mediums.

“Submissions are open to art 2D, 3D, poetry, written word, mixed media, and figurative or metaphorical art,” the statement added.

“Artists are encouraged to include a story or reflection on how the Red Bridge impacted life, past, present and/or for the future. As the Red Bridge has been important to so many of us and may result in numerous submissions, artist statements will be considered in the acceptance criteria.”

Artwork can be submitted through this online form until Nov. 30, 2025.