There are a couple of things about me that come from being born in Canada. One is a sense of freedom and love of wide open spaces. Another is an deep affinity for the First Nations people. They have a rich culture of beliefs, legends and practices.
Unfortunately, as early as the 18th century, when the ‘white man’ arrived, these beliefs were disallowed. This had tragic consequences. Indigenous children were sent to Christian schools in an effort to assimilate them, often causing a loss of identity.
However, their stories and culture did shine through. From 2008 politicians and religious groups started apologising for the past creating an atmosphere for healing.
Reading books of ‘Indian legends’ was one of my favourites in elementary school. A colourful world so different to what I had known – full of animal spirits, religious ceremonies and mysticism. Each member of a tribe has a personal totem (spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem) – often represented by an animal.
Totems play an integral part in the lives of the First Nations people portraying individual legends and stories. There are several types of totems and reasons to build them. There is a mystical connection between man and other living beings. Totems tell this story.
In Northwest British Columbia, totem poles were carved out of cedar. Once erected, they were left to the elements. One example, a chief on Queen Charlotte Islands was honoured with a totem pole carved with symbols of the Moon (personal symbol of the chief for height), a mountain goat (nobility), faces, a grizzly bear (strength and ferocity), and a killer whale (as ruler of the seas and the underworld). Other animals found on totems are beavers, eagles, frogs, hawks, ravens, snakes, thunderbirds and wolves.
A Haida totem pole stood in Jasper, a place of many childhood vacations – an early sculptural influence.
In 2003, I had the opportunity to run an art weekend workshop with the children in the village where I lived. I chose to share this story and make totem poles. The area was quite rural, so as luck would have it, we received a donation of long tree trunks with diameters of about 10-16 centimetres. Each child made their individual totem choosing animals that were important to them. The animals were constructed of chicken wire, fixed to the branches draped with plaster drenched cloth and then painted. It was immediate, exciting and worked. Looking back at it now, it’s amazing that such striking large scale totems were made in just one weekend.
In another totem pole workshop, we used clay to create personal totems. This is something that would be fun to do again with the children of Heacham and surrounding area. It is my dream to be able to offer this as a free workshop at The Old Dairy!
With the help of almost £6000 in donations we have put in an offer for the barn at The Old Dairy. It’s a start. We hope that the Parish Council support us in our enterprise to convert The Old Dairy into an art and community space, putting the heart back into Heacham and saving it from developers.
Esther Boehm, Studio @ 55 • https://www.studioat55.com
eb@estherboehm.com • 07538 986 235
Encouraging Individuality, Acceptance and Understanding