The Riding Mountain Artists’ Residency gives Manitoban artists time to focus on their work in the beautiful natural setting of Riding Mountain National Park.
The next artist-in-residence for the 2026 season is Sharanpal Ruprai. Ahead of her time in the historic Deep Bay Cabin, Sharanpal answered a few of our questions about her work and how she’ll be spending her residency.
MAC: Tell us a little about yourself as an artist and your practice.
Sharanpal: I am a poet and I’m also a professor in the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Winnipeg. I’ve published two books of poetry and I’m currently working on a play as well another poetry collection. My writing stems from my Sikh Punjabi background growing up in Winnipeg and I often use cultural and religious elements to transport readers. When my first book Seva was published, the one thing I heard repeatedly was that people enjoyed being “let into a world” that they were inquisitive about. I see this as an achievement in writing, and I plan to take people inside my world even further with my third poetry collection. The craft of my creative practice is anchored in cultural integrity as I research the impact of religious symbols to inform, influence and shape our understanding of our communities, our world view, and ourselves. My writing practice is sporadic at best! Between now and the residency I will be gathering pieces of poetry on Post-it-notes, legal paper pads, poetry books, names of poets, into a filing box or rather in inspiration box to bring to the residency. It’s like doing my taxes but with poetry lines instead of receipts.
Tell us about your project — what will you be working on in the Deep Bay Cabin?
What I hope to achieve with this residency is to walk away with a completed first draft of a book-length poetry manuscript. The Riding Mountain residency will allow me the opportunity to focus on the task of writing and will provide me with some physical space to write outside my office environment and my hectic day job! I need a bit of isolation for this project to focus, while being immersed in nature will inspire how my words take shape on the page. My plan for the Deep Bay cabin, is to write and layout the poetry book. I have four sections: “Auntyji,” “Five Metres (long poem),” “Braid Us Whole” and “Oonth Means Camel.” I make specific artistic choices around including religious elements. For example, I use the turban as a gender disrupter in my poetry; all genders wear turbans in my long poem “Five Metres,” which comprises the second section. In the third section, all genders have long hair and braids in my poem, “Braid Us Whole,” a poem that links together Sikh children and the pressures of wearing keeping their hair. The title poem of this section delves into the connection between genders and how the fight for bodily autonomy, and struggle for language are braided together. With this collection, I have a very specific audience in mind, that is, Sikh/Punjabi Diasporic communities.
What is your relationship with the park?
I have been to Riding Mountain National Park only once before and it was back in 2003 for my friend’s wedding! They got married at Danceland! I have always wanted to go back and spend some time in the park. I would like to walk the trails and spend time on the water in a canoe!
Growing up in Winnipeg, the summer months were not fun; we didn’t have access to cabins and even if we did, my parents were working full time and rarely went on holidays. So, I was always curious about cabin life! As an adult, I’ve discovered a love for the mountains. When I see groups of South Asian families enjoying the beaches and participating in summer activities, I’m thrilled that they are using these outdoor spaces, something that could not do as young person. I suspect that at Riding Mountain National Park, there will be families that might see Punjabi words and be curious to participate in the poetry project.
How do you hope the park will influence or inspire your project or practice?
I hope to find inspiration at Riding Mountain National Park that incites new words and phrases that I can use in my writing. Through my poetry, I share a perspective is that is both intimate and universal about growing up in Winnipeg, Manitoba and being part of an intersection of communities, and the multiplicity of emotions that being Canadian evokes. When we think about Canada, we think about nature! And I feel that it is the artist’s place to comment on our connections to this land, to our bodies, and to our cultural/religious histories and ancestors.
The Riding Mountain Artists’ Residency is offered in partnership by the Manitoba Arts Council, Wasagaming Community Arts, and Riding Mountain National Park.
Interested in the staying in the Deep Bay cabin? Find out how to apply to the Riding Mountain Artists Residency through the Learn – Residencies grant stream. Apply by January 15, 2027 for a residency in the summer of 2027.
