An army marches on its stomach... a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach... if music be the food of love, play on. To these well-known adages one mayadd, ‘Before eating, always take time to thank the food.’ This lesser known proverb comes from the Arapaho, Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. Food underpinned the unique art of the Northwest American Indian coastal cultures from Alaska to California.
Some of the main tribal groups were, from north to south, the Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Bella Bella, Bella Coola, Kwakiutl, Makah and the Chinook.
The salmon was the main food source, and a centuries old fishing industry was established along the Columbia River Valley long predating the European arrival. The fish were caught in massive numbers, using large hoop nets, spears or complex traps. The salmon were pounded and dried on an industrial scale as a transportable food source which was traded with inland tribes. Archaeological digs in this area have been extremely rewarding for archaeologists, as thousands of articles have been unearthed that record a 10,000-year evolution of cultural and art traditions. Likewise, a Makah village which had been covered by a mudslide prior to European contact was, with tribal descendants’ approval, excavated in 1970 unearthing over 60,000 artefacts. Therefore, the coastal tribes are arguably one of the world’s most art infused cultures.
By 3,000 B.C. permanent villages and large communal buildings constructed from cedar planks, had been established. Many settlements were inland in the shelter of the forest, these had communal meeting places where incredibly complex dance rituals were enacted. In scholarly texts these settlements are categorised as “sedentary”. The inhabitants, although living as hunter gatherers, constructed a rich and distinct culture, usually associated with static agricultural societies. Early Russian, Spanish and English maritime explorers in the 1700’s found the Haida physically formidable and unyielding. However, the explorers coveted the cultural artefacts of the Haida and were keen to trade with them thus easing any tensions between the two parties. The beachfront settlements of the Haida were replete with hundreds of painted totem poles and their plank houses were strikingly decorated with abstractions of clan animals which the Europeans found very impressive. All of this nearly vanished by 1900 as diseases ravaged the native population...thankfully, during more recent times, there has been a renaissance resulting in a generation of artists producing spectacular works informed by their cultural heritage.
The verdancy of this forested Northwest coastal belt, some 1,500 miles long, was for eons fertilised by dead, post spawning salmon that, over time, must have numbered in their billions. This in turn sustained a myriad of life forms including birds, mammals and sea life. The main human food sources included elk, mountain goats, seals, whales, salmon, halibut, shellfish nuts, berries, edible plants and medicinal herbs providing a nutrient and protein rich diet. Each clan or group had their own traditional hunting grounds, as well as specific salmon fishing areas. It is no surprise that the people were credited with being the healthiest of all the North American Indians.
Easily accessible food allowed more free time for creative activities. Articles of high artistic merit were made by the coastal tribes, inspired by their various gods and mythological beings, as well as a panoply of animal and fish deities including orcas, otters, ravens, bears, wolves, beavers, sculpins, salmon, halibut and ling. Even the most mundane everyday objects such as spoons, net gauges, fishhooks, spindle whorls, oil dishes, hats, baskets, storage chests and paddles were given aesthetic consideration. Despite the existence of some traditional guidelines in the making process, artists always managed to create individual interpretations. Everything they made celebrated the life sustaining natural world that they were part of. Their belief systems centred on totemism that connects humans with nature through symbols, animals or plants and animism which maintains that humans, flora, fauna, geographical features and natural phenomena, such as rain and thunderstorms, have souls.
The plentiful, easy to carve, cedar wood gave free rein to their imagination in the creation of totem poles, buildings, masks and the canoes they hued out of large tree trunks. The totem poles were crests and status symbols, that were an abstracted family history, often proclaiming a mythical progenitor. Mammals associated with a particular clan were included, as well as supernatural creatures. Among the latter was the thunderbird, a giant man who lived in the coastal mountains and transformed himself into a huge bird of prey, causing thunder when it opened its wings on its way to hunt whales at sea.
The canoe was essential for both fishing and travelling. Often 300-mile-long journeys were undertaken in large canoes 70 feet long by 10 feet wide. These journeys were made to transport an important chief and his retinue on diplomatic visits or to carry bridal parties. Canoe design varied from tribe to tribe, as did the intended use, some for whaling and others for halibut fishing. Different types of adzes (tool similar to an axe) used in constructing them had blades of nephrite, elk horn, shell or beaver teeth; there were rare instances of iron being used prior to European contact, probably salvaged from Asian shipwrecks. Whaling canoes were 30 feet long with an 8-man crew; 1 steersman, 1 harpooner and 6 rowers. The harpoon and killing lance were tipped with shell or elk horn points. Once harpooned they attached seal skin buoys to their quarry, usually a Minke or other small whale species, with cedar wood fibre ropes so that the dead carcass could be towed ashore. The halibut was the main diet of the Makah people and they fished from small 2-man canoes. In this pursuit their ingenuity came into play, as they designed a hook that would only catch a certain size fish. The halibut can grow to weigh over 200lbs and if one is landed in a small canoe, many miles out to sea, it could spell disaster as they thrash about and are very powerful. The canoes were always beautifully made and decorated, with painted interiors and prows featuring talismanic creatures. Some had sails made of cedar bark, and later, canvas provided by Europeans.
The dance ceremonies and all their trappings indicate that these people had been masters of theatricals for thousands of years. Many ceremonies were held in the depth of winter, as the damp gloom encouraged large gatherings. The tribespeople believed that the atmospheric dramas were important for hunting success and, thereby, their own well- being and clan cohesiveness. To strengthen the latter the adventures of ancient chiefs and heroes were re-enacted by family descendants. Plank houses were the theatres, wherein the floors became stage sets, masterfully organised to ensure that rituals were made hyper real. They used all sorts of props such as false heads, trick knives, rattles and many other devices. They constructed movable stages, as in the Crack of Heaven ceremony, where half the building moved away with half the fire, and the roof slid open. In other ceremonies the audience witnessed salmon leaping through walls, man eating birds walking around the fire, women burnt, then made whole again, giant frogs hopping on the floor.
They even created man eating sea monsters, said to be harbingers of storms and capsizes, emerging from simulated seas.. This is the equivalent of the Nordic maritime mythology of the Kraken, a giant squid who sank ships and ate crews. In other ceremonies supernatural creatures such as monster birds, appeared and reappeared from behind painted screens as part of choreographed rituals where they are gradually exorcised, and in their final entrance they are transformed into humans. Masks had movable parts hinged with string, where one could open the sides and the dancer would take on the persona of a different creature, akin to shapeshifting in Celtic tales. The makers of the masks were called Gitsontk by the Tsimshian and were a secret “guild”. One of the most complex masks was that of the sculpin, or bullhead fish, which had many parts, including jaws, fins and dorsal spikes. It was large and worn on the back of the dancer who was hidden under a curtain arrangement. As the dancer moved in imitation of the swimming fish, its spikes went up and down, its jaws snapped and the tail parts expanded and contracted. To further enhance the image, eagle-feather down was blown over it to simulate bubbles as the sculpin swam to the rise and fall of mesmeric incantations. In the firelight the animated fish and swirling eagle-down must have created an awe-inspiring sight. Not only were hinged masks used for simulating familiar creatures but also the inhabitants of the underworld and the heavens. As well as choristers they utilised puppets and marionettes.
The sculpted masks changed from dark to light as they encircled the fire, making the creatures of the real and supernatural world appear even more visually fantastic. The Shamans had masks, which they believed, imbued the wearer with supernatural healing powers. The land otter was a powerful Shamen helper, as it was considered to be a transformed human who had drowned or disappeared. The transformative element of the Shaman masks must surely have been inspired by constantly viewing, over the centuries, the incredible transmogrification of their main food source, the salmon. Prior to spawning, its features begin to change and become grotesque, with an elongated lower jaw called a kype. Imagination could only interpret this changed appearance as a preparatory stage prior to entering the next world, a spiritual ritual connected with reincarnation, ensuring the salmon’s annual return or transformation into a supernatural being.
Their (who is their....the tribe, the shaman?) highly decorated musical instruments included drums, wooden trumpets, whistles and clap sticks. To denote the spirits approaching, in the Winter Ceremonials of the Kwakiutl trumpets made of tubes of bull kelp that made a wailing sound were used. Costume design in the form of dance tunics made from birch bark, and later European cloth, were individually created for each “stage production”. They were elaborately embroidered with beads; puffin beaks and deer hooves were often included to make a clacking sound as the dancer whirled. The unique Potlatch ceremony attracted large audiences with feasting, speech making, and entertainment, including theatrical productions. At its heart is the distribution of goods by the host who gains high status by giving away all his accumulated prized possessions. No wonder the Christian church and government officials frowned on this idea as it was a totally alien concept to them. Other than validating social status, other events
such as marriages, births, deaths and initiations occasioned Potlatches.
The culture of the people of the Northwest only just survived, primarily in British Colombia, Canada, prior to its resurgence in the last century. Collectors of coastal tribal artefacts had been active since the mid-19th century. To house this material institutes and museums were established by the 1920’s which also preserved and studied the art and culture of the Northwest Coast Indians. This has resulted in a substantial body of scholarly writings as well as films recording their ceremonies. After a long period of resistance, treaties have allowed tribal groups to regain control over their lives and culture. Today’s descendants are creating a body of art that is a continuum of their traditional interpretations of the world that has remained unchanged and steadfastly important to them. Gold and silver are now added to traditional materials in art making and two-dimensional prints are highly prized internationally. Northwest American Indian Art is incredibly distinctive, and its graphic splendour gives it an honoured place in world art. We need them and their art more than they need us and ours...long may they dance.
Copyedits made by the Editor.
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