Women Carvers of the Northwest Coast

(Hardback)

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Stunning photography of wood and argillite carvings by over a hundred Indigenous women artists on the Northwest Coast.

Though women of the Northwest Coast have long carved poles, canoes, panels, and masks, many of these artists have not become as well known outside their communities as their male counterparts. These artists are cherished within their communities for helping to keep traditional carving practices alive, and for maintaining the dances, songs, and ceremonies that are intertwined with visual art production. This book, which accompanies an exhibition at the Audain Art Museum, gathers a range of sculptural formats by Indigenous women over the past seventy years in order to expand the discourse of carving in the region.

Both the exhibition and publication are co-curated by Dana Claxton, artist, filmmaker and head of the University of British Columbias Department of Art History, Visual Art and Theory; and Dr. Curtis Collins, the Audains Director & Chief Curator. Texts include an introduction by Skeena Reece, an essay by Claxton, and interviews with Dale Campbell and Mary Anne Barkhouse. Over one hundred artworks from public and private collections across North America are shown, including several newly commissioned pieces.

Featured artists include:

• Ellen Neel (Kwakwaka'wakw, 19161966)
• Freda Diesing (Haida, 19252002)
• Susan Point (Musqueam, b. 1952)
• Dale Campbell (Tahltan, b. 1954)
• Marianne Nicolson (Kwakwakawakw, b. 1969)
• Arlene Ness (Gitxsan, b. 1970s)
• Skeena Reece (Tsmsyen/Gitxsan and Cree, b. 1974)
• Melanie Russ (Haida, b. 1977)
• Morgan Asoyuf (Tsmsyen, b. 1984)
• Cori Savard (Haida, b. 1985)
• Stephanie Anderson (Wetsuweten, b. 1991)
• Veronica Waechter (Gitxsan, b. 1995)