When renowned Haida artist Robert Davidson was a kid, he used to root for the cowboys while watching old Westerns, cheering with his friends when the \u201cbad guys\u201d \u2014 the Indians \u2014 were killed. Then his uncle took him aside and explained that he and his family were \u201cIndians\u201d themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he told me, I cried,\u201d Davidson recalled last week during a Native American Heritage Month talk hosted by Sealaska Heritage Institute in Juneau.<\/p>\n
The process of discovering his identity as a Haida man went forward from there, quickly picking up speed as he began immersing himself in Northwest Coast art. It\u2019s a trajectory that is still moving forward, one that has placed him among the most celebrated and influential Northwest Coast artists working today.<\/p>\n
Davidson\u2019s exploration of Haida art and culture as a young man came at a time when the art had nearly disappeared from his hometown of Masset, British Columbia. Somewhat ironically, he was first introduced to old pieces from his region while visiting museums as a teenager in Vancouver, where art from Haida Gwaii was prominently displayed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I went to the city, people knew more about us than I did,\u201d Davidson, now 69, recalled.<\/p>\n
Curious about where the art had gone in Masset, and driven to study as much of it as he could, Davidson said he returned to his village to look for examples.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knocked on every door to ask if there was any art left,\u201d Davidson said. \u201cI found one box.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though concrete examples were scarce in Masset, Davidson was able to draw on the knowledge and support of his family, many of whom were artists themselves, including his father, Claude Davidson, and his grandfather, Robert Davidson Sr. (whom he referred to in last week\u2019s talk as \u201ctsinii,\u201d the Haida word for grandfather). Davidson\u2019s great grandfather was the celebrated Haida artist Charles Edenshaw.<\/p>\n
Davidson himself began learning to carve argillite from his father when he was 13.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel my success (as an artist) came from my grandfather, my uncles, my parents,\u201d Davidson said.<\/p>\n
His forward momentum reached its first dramatic peak in August 1969, at the age of 22, when he carved and raised the first totem pole in Masset in nearly 90 years, with the help of his brother Reg and others. The raising of Davidson\u2019s \u201cBear Mother\u201d pole proved to be a watershed event for Masset, invigorating the town, and spurring elders to remember parts of ceremonial dances and songs. In a previous interview, Davidson compared each person to a thin thread that united to form a strong rope, pulling the knowledge back from the brink of a void into which it might have disappeared forever.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople had never experienced anything like (the totem raising), myself included,\u201d Davidson said.<\/p>\n
Davidson\u2019s grandfather, then in his late 80s, was one of the leaders of the raising. Three weeks later he died peacefully, telling his daughter, \u201cMy job is done.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the raising, Davidson devoted himself to studying Haida art and culture, learning from experts including Bill Reid and Bill Holm. Now known for his contemporary interpretations of traditional formline, Davidson said creativity within the art form has to happen in the context of traditional knowledge.<\/p>\n
\u201cCreating was key in the culture but it had to be with the foundation of knowledge,\u201d Davidson said. \u201cThe real key is to learn the foundation from the old masters and to expand on that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davidson said such expansion is also a part of Haida tradition.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe art was always moving forward,\u201d he said. \u201cThere was always a progression.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the important things an artist learns from studying old pieces is a sense of intuition about qualities such as balance and proportion, which are key to understanding Northwest Coast design. We all know what is beautiful, Davidson said, even if we don\u2019t understand why. Study allows creative decision-making to become more automatic.<\/p>\n
\u201cIntuitive creativity happens after 10,000 hours of practice,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Davidson works in many different media, and is known for his carvings, sculpture and paintings. His work has been exhibited at museums including Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of the American Indian, the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, and the Vancouver Art Gallery, and he is widely recognized as one of the most accomplished artists in Canada.<\/p>\n
Juneau residents will recognize him as the artist behind one of the most prominent pieces of public art in the city, the huge red metal panels on the Water Soboleff Building. Davidson is one of three artists who created major art pieces for the building, along with Tlingit artist Preston Singletary and Tsimshian artist David Boxley.<\/p>\n
Rosita Worl, president of Sealaska Heritage Institute, said Davidson\u2019s widespread influence on the region goes far beyond his physical artwork. Davidson inspired SHI to create its art department years ago, she said, after telling her that traditional art was deteriorating due to a lack of knowledge about formline.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was from that teaching, from those words, that we began our art department,\u201d Worl said after Davidson\u2019s presentation. \u201cHe was the impetus for us to really concentrate on our art.\u201d<\/p>\n
SHI\u2019s art department now includes outreach to villages around the region, as well as to schools and Lemon Creek Correctional Center.<\/p>\n
Worl said in a previous Empire interview that Northwest Coast art can be understood as a \u201cvery overt manifestation of our culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davidson\u2019s talk, \u201cDiscovering Haida Art: A Personal Journey with Haida Master Artist Robert Davidson\u201d was part of SHI\u2019s Native American Heritage Month series, which continues next week with \u201cNorthwest Coast Art Into the Future,\u201d featuring young artists Alison Bremner, David R. Boxley, Rico Worl and Nick Galanin. The presentation will be at noon Thursday, Dec. 3, at the Walter Soboleff Building on the second floor. It is free and open to the public.<\/p>\n
For more, visit www.sealaskaheritage.org.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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