After photographing many monuments with Indian figures envisioned by white people-like the Samuel de Champlain monument--I wondered what an Aboriginal-commissioned and designed monument would look like. My question was answered with the unveiling of the Aboriginal War Memorial in Ottawa, which took place on National Aboriginal Day on June 21, 2000. This was an exciting experience for me because I was able to photograph the first stone put in place as well as the official unveiling. Yet I no longer felt constrained to just look at historical photographs of Aboriginal veterans--I was able to personalize the experience when I asked my friend Barry Ace if his father would consent to be photographed in front of the monument. He agreed, and this is what transpired on October 29, 2005.