28 — Friday, June 5, 1998 — North Shore News Remembering genesis From pane 18 utilize the same green color on their masks), Richard Hunt, Willie Seaweed and Freda Diesing. Manv of the masks (prior to 1870) were made by unknown artists although at one time all this information was passed down through oral traditions. Rediscoveries are constantly being made into the art prac- tives of the ancient coastal cultures. The role of the artist was important and involved an extensive apprenticeship, During the latter half of the 19th centucy some of them attained celebrity status (and created objects for European consumption) which is torru- nate as it is via accounts of personal experiences that much of the traditional sys- tems have been remembered. in an initiation (around 1880) nwo eyelashes of the infant Mungo Martin were plucked (by the master carver Yakorglasami) and added to a paintbrush which the student used throughout childhood. Muago was placed inside a drum four times per day by an uncle and as an adolescent his grandfather taught him to sing. “Educational techniques incorporated the niytho-thvo- Eetical with the practical — apprentices duplicated the models of elders until they gradually developed their own styles. Flaida artist Robert Davidson provides his stu- dents with half-finished tem- plates to work on. “Kinship. Genesis. I think it’s really important to be able to make that distinction when we look at first ancestor masks like the wolf,” observes exhib- it curator Robert Joseph. + “The wolf is one of the first ancestors of some of the :. tribes along the Pacific: “Northwest Coast. The first “ member of the tribe evolved from the wolf. Down through millennium when we dance ‘and sing and tell our stories - and put-on wolf masks we are _abrays retelling our genesis trom the-very first days. The “emphasis on kinship is why we -have very strong families, very strong commiunitics, a very strong sense of nationhood. Beeause we protract our gene- sis througlvall of our cére- “monies, all the time, repeated- -ly.over and over again. The wolf masks in the exhibit all represent that gen¢sis.” ‘The northern cultural sphere of the Northwest. Coast nations (Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian) historically adhered to phratic atfliation and matrilineal descent asa basis of social organization, The Tlingit have wo phratries (Raven and Woll}; the Haida also have two (Raven and Eagle}; the Tsimshian, inchud- ing Nisza’a and Gitxsan, have four (Raven, Wolf, Eagle and Killer Whale). People belong to one of these exagamous divisions fron: birth and it serves to define their relation: ship with the rest of the soci- v. “The southern culrural sphere is much more diverse athough it has often been misinterpreted as a structural extension of the northern societies. The administrative units of the southern groups (Kwaiwaka'wakw, Nuu-cha- nulth, Makah, Haisla, Haihais, Naxalk, Heiltsuk, Oweekeno, Squamish and Burrard) are patrilineal extended families. Historically, winter cere- monials emphasized the sacred and secular authority of certain individuals within the society. This winter seasen was distinguished by ritual dramas not known among the northern cultures. Mythological characters were portrayed by masks owned by ancestral lineages who had exclusive rights to their use. Unlike the northern region, where masterful imagery could be found on the most ordinary objects, the southern groups focuss:d their art production on the winter ceremonial complex. It “made the supernatural world visible. The incredible array of creatures (human, animal and mythic) that inhabit the minds and landscape of Northwest Coast people were realized through the medium of dance dramas,” Peter Macnair observes in The Legacy (1980), published by the Roval British Columbia Museum. : Down from the Shimmering ” Shyis a rare opportunity to . View firsthand more than nwo centuries of historical artifacts from Northwest Coasr master craftsmen, The work of two women, the Haida’s Freda Diesing and Ellen Neel of the Kwakwaka'wakv, are also included in the exhibit. There are perhaps more women among the unknown artists bur further research needs to be done in this area. Diesing. will be part of an artists’ roundtable discussion called Masks: Traditions in Times of Change, scheduled for Saturday, June 20 at 4 p.m, at the Robson Square _ PINE TABLES 4-9 FT ROUND OR SQUARE 20% oFF ~ Misit our showroom, fax or phone “BRASSICLES | Fax 922-2466 "Ph 922-3156 1554 Marine Dr., West Vancouver ‘ (valid until June 30/98) ! L Conterence Centre. Ron Hannon and Don Yoemans will join her along with mod- erator Ruth Phillips. Throughout die sunimer the gallery will host First Nauons Mask Dance perfor: mances on Friday evenings. For more infermation on the exhibit call 662-47 19. Anthropologist Franz Boas first learned of the Northwest Coast cultures after meeting a troupe of Nuxalk dancers touring Germany in 1886. | £ | a ie | Photo trom Cheryl Coull sA Traveller's Guide to Aboriginal ac. -wmecap 8 Books, 1996) Capilano Mall & The Nerth Shore New resent JUNE 714th to JUNE 91 st Capilano Mali and the North Shore News are pleased to announce the first annual "Wheels We Drive" event, : This will be the North Shore's very own Community Car Show. This event will take place at Capilano Mall the week preceding Father's Day, June 14th - 21st, 1998. and attention to detail. judging will be done'‘by a select panel of local auto dealers with the exception of the Reade Choice, Best of Show. Winning vehicles must be available for display in Capilano Mali June 18-21. Stock North American auto circ. 1945-69. Name Address Phone ___ Make/Model of car Engine Owned since VINTAGE CAR North American or import auto circ. 1910-1940 MOST EXCITING MUSCLE CAR Stock or modified domestic North American auto circ. 1960-75. BEST CLASSIC DOMESTIC AUTO MOST AWESOME 4X4 Open to North American or. . import trucks, built between 1945-98 BEST CLASSIC IMPORT AUTO Stock imported auto circ. 1945- 09. LI []. READERS CHOICE, BEST OF SHOW Open from all categories. This category is determined by entries from a North Shore News ballot and deposited in the mall, Displacement Comments All cars must pre-register, Drop off registration fornis, before June 10th to the North Shore Xews, 1139 Lonsdale ve., North Vancouver, B.C. V7M a FECAPILANO MALL north shore