Carving since his 20s, səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Elder and master carver Mark George has a repertoire of totems that bring Indigenous culture to all corners of the world. Next month the artist will add another to his belt, this time bringing a celebration of Tsleil-Waututh history closer to home.
George has been selected to design a totem pole for Parkland’s Burnaby Refinery, following a call out issued to Indigenous artists last year.
The 30-foot totem, said the artist, incorporates elements of Indigenous history, culture and tradition, with four key emblems that are of great significance to the Tsleil-Waututh Nation.
At the totem’s highest point sits an eagle, a sacred creature regarded as the connection to the spiritual world. Prevalent within iconography seen at funerals, they are acknowledged for their role in “carrying spirits to the land beyond,” said George.
Beneath it sits the head of a killer whale, referred to by George as the Blackfish. Seen as water guides by the Tsleil-Waututh, orca are regarded highly in seafaring history. “If we’re out in the ocean using canoes, the way we used to travel in the olden days, and you got lost, Blackfish would help you back to the land,” he said.
The wolf represents the strong bond of family, a nod to its pack mentality that is so vital to the Tsleil-Waututh, while the bear, with its strength and power, is designed to protect the totem and the area it will lie within, he added.
George has been chipping away at the cedar log since September, carrying out the project in his own backyard underneath a tarp designed to protect it from North Vancouver’s unpredictable elements.
Some of the finer design choices, like the hues used to brighten the piece, have experienced much change over that time, said George.
“At first I was trying to stick to the colours that our people had in the olden days, black and red,” he said. “But I had to change it up a bit to really highlight the features.” The inclusion of a vibrant blue to the eyes of the featured figures adds to the totem’s impact, said George, and separates the piece from other totems that have been crafted before.
It marks the ninth totem to be carved by George’s hands, adding to a collection that comprises a 12-foot piece created for a business in Nanaimo, another crafted for the North American Native Museum in Switzerland’s Zurich, and a number of personally commissioned pieces that have been delivered around the world. Locally, George also lays claim to the towering sun totem that sits at Lonsdale Quay.
“It’s hard to pick a favourite, with all of them I enjoy doing the work,” said George. “As I make each one I find out a little bit more about the history of our people. I’m learning all the time.”
Leaning on four decades of woodworking experience, the 66 year old also crafts a melange of other highly sought after art pieces: intricately carved staffs, masks, paddles, ornaments, welcome posts and, most recently, picture frames.
George’s other current project, which he’ll return to once the totem is complete, is a four-by-five-foot frame designed to be used for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls march, penned for February next year.
“I was hoping that they could make a collage or something, and put all the women, all their pictures and information about them, in it, so they’re not forgotten,” he said.
For now, with the totem’s instalment date clear on the horizon, George is funnelling all his efforts into perfecting the final details of the colossal piece. The pole will be relocated to Burnaby in the first week of September, with its official unveiling due to take place on the 22nd.
Mina Kerr-Lazenby is the North Shore News’ Indigenous and civic affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
