Totems

Beaver Model Pole
Robert Davidson (Haida)

1970 Robert Davidson modelled this pole after an old totem that stood in Skidegate, Haida Gwaii. ...

1970 Robert Davidson modelled this pole after an old totem that stood in Skidegate, Haida Gwaii. This pole had a similar bottom Beaver figure. Davidson started carving the piece in 1970 and set aside for a few years, finishing it closer to 1975.  It is dated to the year he began carving it, however. Davidson used a curved knife to texture the entire finish of the pole to emulate the original that stood in the Skidegate. Indigenous artwork on the Pacific Northwest Coast often incorporates figu...

Raven Model Pole
Jim Hart (Haida)

This model pole is based on a totem pole that stood in Masset on Haida Gwaii. In 1901 the pole wa...

This model pole is based on a totem pole that stood in Masset on Haida Gwaii. In 1901 the pole was moved from Masset to Beacon Hill Park in Victoria. In 1948, a strong wind storm blew the pole down and the fragments were transferred to the University of British Columbia. The Museum of Anthropology commissioned Jim Hart to make a reconstruction of the pole, and with the assistance of an archival photo of the pole as it stood in Victoria, he created a clay model for a new full-sized pole. In 19...

Beaver Totem Pole
Gerry Sheena (Salish)

Indigenous artwork on the Pacific Northwest Coast often incorporates figures and animals that are...

Indigenous artwork on the Pacific Northwest Coast often incorporates figures and animals that are related to crest symbols. Crests have been passed down through families and have varying meanings depending on the context and association with a nation, clan, or family. The figures depicted in contemporary Northwest Coast Indigenous artwork also have varying meanings but there are some common characteristics from a range of sources, including oral histories and artist descriptions.Beaver appear...

Salish Salmon Charmer
Luke Marston (Salish)

This sculpture tells the story of an infamous Salish Salmon Charmer. The fisherman, although blin...

This sculpture tells the story of an infamous Salish Salmon Charmer. The fisherman, although blind, knew of the most fruitful fishing spots. This piece was carved from old growth red cedar. The three salmon are carved from the same log as the charmer and the base. The removable rattle held in the figure’s left hand is carved from yellow cedar and is fully functional. Indigenous artwork on the Pacific Northwest Coast often incorporates figures and animals that are related to crest symbols. Cre...

Southeast Wind (Killer Whale Pole)
Robert Davidson (Haida)

Southeast Wind is a Killer Whale with Human and Wiid, a supernatural Haida bird. The two holes re...

Southeast Wind is a Killer Whale with Human and Wiid, a supernatural Haida bird. The two holes represent the eyes of the Killer Whale. Around Wiid's head at the base of the pole is the mouth of Killer Whale and the tail is at the top, surrounding Human. This totem pole was part of an exhibition "Abstract Impulse" that opened in 2013 at the Seattle Art Museum and closed (2014) at the Smithsonian in New York City. This totem was exhibited again in the exhibition "Robert Davidson Progression of ...