Young John Sabourin waved from his front yard as the Popemobile rolled past his house in Fort Simpson on Sept. 30, 1987.

鈥淭here were 200 vehicles parked in our yard. TV cameras from all over,鈥� Sabourin recalled. 鈥淲e walked down the hill to see (Pope John Paul II) and the Dene leaders who gathered. To me it wasn鈥檛 a big deal. It was a spectacle.鈥�

In 2022, artist John Sabourin plans to see Pope Francis for other reasons during his Canadian visit scheduled for this summer.

鈥淚 look forward to the pope coming and apologizing on behalf of the Vatican,鈥� he said.

Sabourin has dedicated the last two years to carving out a case for a papal apology while documenting survivors鈥� stories in chlorite and alabaster.

When Caregivers Don鈥檛 Care: The Impact of Residential School, is a series of 10 carved figurative sculptures that express the themes of evil, horror, grief, despair and cultural survival that wind through residential school narratives.

Sabourin, who boarded for three years at the LaPointe Hall residential school in Fort Simpson, based the imagery on overlapping stories heard from loved ones and neighbours over his lifetime.

鈥淭his is a story of Indigenous culture across Canada as well as our own in the Dehcho,鈥� he explained. 鈥淪ome of it is for me. For some, I鈥檝e heard the story. It鈥檚 a truth that has to be told and shared so it鈥檚 not forgotten. It means a lot to me.鈥�

Sabourin鈥檚 signature carving style features meandering lines and a constant sense of fluid movement, most-often in his depiction of animals such as ravens, loons, bears or shaman in mid-transformation.

鈥淚 remember as a child always stopping to look at the snowdrifts as well as always looking up at the 快盈v3 lights. So this is what I鈥檝e been trying to capture,鈥� he said, referring to his style over his career.

In a departure, the present series includes figurative carvings, but they remain distinctly Sabourin.

In 鈥淏elieve or you will burn in hell,鈥� the carver uses his smooth undulating lines to depict a nun beating an unknown student. The creases and folds of her garment crawl up her tunic like fire and brimstone. In her hand she swings a rosary as a weapon, delicately carved, sanded and filed by the artist over seven days.

Sabourin produced a sculpture every four weeks or so since receiving a Canada Council for the Arts grant for the project, which had already marinated in his imagination for about a decade.

The imagery is not meant to be comfortable.

Sabourin reveals a small child peering from under a priest鈥檚 robe in 鈥淯nholy Communion鈥� and children kidnapped by boat in 鈥淭aken from belonging.鈥�

In 鈥淣ot coming home,鈥� a mother sobs into her palms as a child, appearing grey by Sabourin鈥檚 use of unpolished chlorite, reaches up as a memory.

A child stuffs a suitcase in 鈥淧acking for a confused and confusing home,鈥� a large cross among her baggage.

Two girls fight over a bowl of soup in 鈥淲e tear each other apart,鈥� and a child bites on her restraints as she kneels on a disc of alabaster in the shape of a communion wafer in 鈥淭rying to be good for God.鈥�

It鈥檚 a bleak collection, 鈥渉eavy鈥� Sabourin says, but not exclusively.

In 鈥淗ealing Medicine,鈥� a mature drummer stands firm and tall.

鈥淗e has pride in himself, his people and his culture,鈥� Sabourin said, describing the figure.

The largest sculpture in the collection is 鈥淗ope rebirth of a family.鈥� On one side, a woman is in labour. On the other, connected by the umbilical cord, is hope in the form of a child.

鈥淎nd where there鈥檚 hope, the possibility for reconnecting is born,鈥� said Sabourin.

Sabourin is currently working in Frozen Rock Studio in Kam Lake on a new collection of ravens, loons and bears for a show at the Ad盲ka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse at the end of the month, followed by a visit to the Great 快盈v3 Arts Festival in Inuvik in July.