'The Jade Canoe' at Vancouver International Airport and 'The Black Canoe' at the Canadian embassy in Washington, DC, are the only two bronze versions of this sculpture in existence. The artist Bill Reid, who is part Haida, is internationally renowned for his totem ples and other large pieces, as well as for his work on a small scale in silver and gold. His masterpiece, 'The Spirit of Haida Gwaii', is a bronze canoe six metres (20 feet) long, filled to overflowing with the creatures of Haida mythology. Its ten passengers include the Raven, the Eagle, the Bear and his human wife, the Mouse Woman and the Dogfish Woman. In the middle stands the Chief holding his hand a smaller sculpture: a talking stick that depicts the store of creation in Haida terms. Ulli Steltzer's superb black and white photographs record and reveal intimate insights into the creative process of this sculpture, as well as the parts and whole of this monumental work. The story of the sculpture and of its creator, Bill Reid, is engagingly related by Robin Laurence. And Bill Reid's own descriptions of the creatures in the canoe provide glimpses into the mythic complexity and power of 'The Spirit of Haida Gwaii'. Vancouver/Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre; Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1997 Size: 62p Style: paperback |