DiscoverTotems

The City of Vancouver is named after the famous British navigator, Captain George Vancouver, R.N., who in 1792 named and explored Burrard Inlet, on whose shore the city stands.In April 1792, Vancouver arrived off the shores of what was to become British Columbia. Sailing through the Strait of Jaun de Fuca, he began a detailed survey of the coast which was to occupy him until his departure for England late in 1794. Captain Vancouver was not the first white man to visit the site of the future city. That distinction goes to two Spanish navigators, Narvaez and Verdia, who were on the scene a year earlier.
At the time of Captain Vancouver's visit, at least three Indian villages exisited within the city limits. These were Kokopai at Locarno Beach, Snaq on the sea front at Kitsilano, and Whoi-Whoi, close to Lumberman's Arch in Stanley Park. To these should be added the Indian village of Musqueam, still very much alive on the city's southwestern outskirts, and another village at the mouth of the Capilano River.
excerpted from 1001 British Columbia Place Names by G.P.V. & Helen B. Akrigg, Discovery Press 1969

Map of Vancouver as charted by Captain George Vancouver from http://www.navy.gc.ca/project_pride/all_images/photo_archive_images/Larg...

Artists, VANOC clash over aboriginal art (Source: http://www.cbc.ca/arts/artdesign/story/2010/01/12/vanoc-art.html)

A fight has erupted between some native artists and the Vancouver Olympic Committee over the definition of authentic aboriginal art. The artists complain that the committee, known as VANOC, is misleading the public about the authenticity of aboriginal products sold at venues and stores such as The Bay.

VANOC is calling products that are manufactured in China with a Canadian aboriginal design "authentic aboriginal products," says Shane Jackson of Vancouver-based Spirit Works.

A group of aboriginal artists in Vancouver began a campaign Tuesday to label art that is really authentic, meaning it has been designed, made and distributed by aboriginal artists. Art that meets that criteria will be marked with a new sticker of an aboriginal figure with both hands raised.

Jackson, whose company has jewelry and bentwood boxes in 80 retail shops, came up with the idea. "We've been under siege by non-aboriginal actors misleading the public into thinking that we're behind their products," he told CBC News. "This is a disturbing marketing practice and it appears the Olympics has jumped on board." Jackson finds it ironic that Olympic organizers have not put any protection in place for aboriginal artists. "The Olympics is almost fanatical about the protection of their own brands. They've stolen the authentic aboriginal product brand. I'm hoping it was unintentional; it certainly doesn't appear that way." Artists, VANOC clash over aboriginal art 

Five major B.C. native artists are so far onboard with Jackson's campaign. He hopes to put pressure on Canada to introduce legislation to protect aboriginal artists, similar to legislation the United States has had for years. "The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 has been enacted in the United States — that was 20 years ago — it's absolutely absurd that we don't have something similar," Jackson said.

VANOC-approved products include passport holders, luggage tags, glass boxes and sweaters. In an email, a VANOC spokesperson concedes products are made overseas, but points out that one third of royalties from its aboriginal product line will go to an Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund to support education, sport and culture.

VANOC officials have yet to comment on the artists' sticker campaign. With files from CBC's Margo Kelly

In honor of Bill Reid's birthday (January 12th), there is a 20% discount on admission to Bill Reid Gallery in Downtown Vancouver (Jan 12-17) all week! Make sure to take advantage! http://bit.ly/72y6j6

Every summer, I load the kids (now teens) into a car or a boat or a float plane and set out to discover new totem pole sites in British Columbia. Aboriginal tourism in BC runs the gamut of Native village tours, white water rafting, guided kayak tours, self-guided maps of totem poles sites to hokey cigar store tourist sites selling trinkets made in China.

We're never at a loss for new places to visit. I'm starting to search out a route for a summer road trip that will take us from Vancouver (home base) to Prince Rupert to hit the maximum number of totem pole sites with the minimum amount of teenage boredom.

Definitely on our list this year is the Kispiox Village Walking Tours near New Hazelton, BC. These much-admired Kispiox totem poles stand near the junction of the Kispiox and Skeena rivers. (map).

Kispiox Totem Poles

There are approximately 25 totem poles. Some date as far back as 1880 and as recent as 1995. The much-admired Kispiox totem poles stand in the grass at the edge of the community where the Kispiox & Skeena rivers meet. Carved with Eagle, Raven, Frog, Killer Whale, Bear, Wolf, & Human figures, they commemorate the dead, signify ownership, & offer insight into the heritage of the local people. The characteristic figures on totem poles are symbols comparable to family crests. They illustrate historical events that occured in a House's past. If the historical event involved several houses, those Houses may share the crest.

The pole's owners display their crests on the pole to establish and make public their claims to vested rights and privileges. They varied with each family; they were exclusive property and were guarded. Each carved illustration on the poles serve a multiple purpose: besides commemorating the dead and showing ownership, they familiarize youths with their histories - keeping part of our heritage alive.

Source: http://www.kispioxadventures.com/english/tt/culture.htm

This month's project is locating all the publicly-accessible totem poles along the Sunshine Coast and adding a new section for the Sunshine Coast to the "Book of Totems" section of this site.

So I'll be trolling up the Coast starting in Gibsons, Gibsons Landing, Robert's Creek, Sechelt, Half Moon Bay and upto the Skookumchuck Narrows researching and documenting the Coast line.  I've placed two geocaches already at locations in Sechelt that should be activated shortly as part of a larger Sunshine Coast MultiPuzzle to coincide with the 2010 Olympics. 

So if you know of any authentic aboriginal poles along the coast that are in publicly accessible locations (aka not on private property) - Drop us a note on the contact page and give me directions and any information you might have about the carver, the images, and the origins of the pole. 

Photo: Group of 5 poles at the Tsain-Ko Village Shopping Centre in Sechelt

View Sunshine Coast Totems in a larger map

The Museum of Anthropology opened its doors to the public today after a six-month closure for renovations and “innovations.”

The $55-million, 2-year-long renewal project won’t be fully completed until January 2010, but significant portions of the renovations, including a thoughtfully redesigned entry and Great Hall, and a new addition housing a 41,000 square foot research wing are complete.

“Our designers, installers and the whole crew has been working around the clock to get ready,” said MOA communications manager Jennifer Webb as she steps over plywood boards that covers what will soon be a mosaic by artist Susan Point at the museum’s entry.

Tomorrow’s Phase One opening features the iconic Great Hall, which houses carvings and totems of the Haida, Kwakwaka'wakw, Gitxsan, Nisga'a, Haisla, and Oweekenois people. The thoughtfully re-conceived Great Hall is still the jewel of the museum, one of Arthur Erikson’s signature buildings.

“Stantec Architecture worked with Erikson on the redesign to ensure that changes and additions were true to the original design language of the building,” said Webb.

In the Great Hall visitors will be able to get closer to the totem poles and there will be more touchable objects, including a Bill Reid Canoe and bear.

“About 75 per cent of our original spaces have been renovated and expanded,” said Webb.

In May, Bill Reid’s Rotunda with its display of The Raven and the First Men will be re-opened, and include a display of the Bill Reid gold that was stolen, and then returned to the museum. (Renovations include a security upgrade.)

When the final phase completes in January 2010, the museum’s “multiversity galleries,” a huge expansion to the previous visible storage gallery will open. The museum’s undisplayed collections will be available for public view in cases designed by Italy’s renowned Gippion Laboratorio. Gippion Laboratorio also designed cases for the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Mona Lisa.

The expanded research wing includes laboratories, airy storage wings, administration offices and the MOA’s unique Reciprocal Research Network.

The RRN, a groundbreaking digital record-keeping and network project will link eventually the museum’s collections with researchers, academics and communities of origin through a digital platform, making the collections globally accessible.

The renewal project also includes an expanded rentals program, and landscaping includes spaces with spectacular mountain views that can hold tents. “We’ll finally be available for weddings,” said Webb. “We get a lot of calls about that.”

Finally, on the northeast flank of the building, the reflecting pools that were an integral part of Erikson’s original design will finally be built. “We’re very excited to bring that to completion,” said Webb. “We didn’t have the funds previously, but Arthur Erikson’s supporters and others have come forward so we can complete the legacy.”

from from an article by Denise Ryan, Vancouver Sun 

The House of the Ghosts installation at the Vancouver Art Gallery is best seen at night and runs from October 4, 2008 to January 11, 2009.

Marianne Nicolson, a member of the Dzawada'enuxw Tribe of the Kwakwaka'wakw Nation, first came to prominence in 1998 when she scaled a vertical rock face in Kingcome Inlet to paint a 28 x 38-foot pictograph the first in the inlet for over sixty years to mark the continued vitality of her ancestral village of Gwa'yi. In a similarly monumental gesture, Nicolson's site-specific project The House of the Ghosts imaginatively transforms the Georgia Street facade of the Vancouver Art Gallery into a Northwest Coast ceremonial house. Using high-powered lighting, Nicolson will project the vision of a house front and totem poles onto the Gallery facade from dusk to dawn every night. By altering the Gallery in this way, the building itself becomes a site of cultural exchange, emphasizing its importance as a transformative space while wryly commenting on its historic role as a courthouse and jail where, decades ago, First Nations peoples were punished for defying the government's Potlach ban. Nicolson sees this work as a positive and symbolic reassertion of a culture in a place where it was once forbidden, in a gesture that speaks to the vibrancy of Kwakwaka'wakw culture and the need to sustain it.

For more informations: http://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/the_exhibitions/exhibit_next_marianne_nic...

This Squamish welcome figure is visible from the Lions' Gate bridge and can be seen from multiple locations on English Bay and from Stanley Park. We hid a geocache here and come here often to walk the dogs. It was carved by Sekwilm Siyan Sintl', Stan Joseph Jr., assisted by Wesley Nahanee and William Nahanee.This Welcoming Figure was raised at the first K'aya'chtn (gather of ocean canoes). The Squamish Nation dedicated this figure n July 25th, 2001 with a prayer to Welcome/Guardian Woman in gratitude to all our grandmothers.

This week, we decided to hide a geocache at the totem pole in Horseshoe Bay Park - as it seems we are spending alot of time travelling on the ferries this summer! Anne & Haley help me pick a hiding spot for this cache. This pole was carved by Chief William Jeffery and his son Rupert; dedicated in 1975 and depicts the Early History of the Great Northwest Coast Tsimshian Indian Nation.

For the second trip in a row, I've been prevented from getting to the sister totem pole to Royal Totem Pole!

Royal Totem pole is actually a copy of the one in Great Windsor Park and is located in a section of the park called Virginia Waters. On my last trip earlier this year, I couldn't wrangle enough time and a car to get out to the park and on this trip the whole park was cordoned off due to an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease. My geocaching buddies Team Sandivka were all geared up and ready to place a cache at nearby with me and kick off a mini-world travel bug race. But heck, none of us were ready to risk a run in with the Queen's guards. So we resolved to go back a third time as soon as the outbreak is contained..so stay tuned!