The eagle flies the highest in the sky, and in a coast salish story people would seek guidance from the eagle to gain knowledge of faraway places. This representational eagle wing relief was created to bring the knowledge to students as they seek guidance in their studies. -- Marissa Nahanee

Art and weavings: A collaboration with SFU Galleries

From the beginning we always envisioned that the ICRC would include artwork, the challenge was wear we could hang or incorporate pieces. As Lyackson and Snuneymuxw artist Qwul'thilum (Dylan Thomas) shared while participating in the Salish Weave Box Sets: Art and Storytelling project, communities without a written language often used art as a way to record knowledge (personal communication, April 01, 2022). During the design phase of the ICRC development, Ashley Edwards, Jenna Walsh (Indigenous Initiatives librarians) and Natalie Gick (Associate Dean of Libraries, Administrative Services) reached out to Kimberly Phillips (Director, SFU Galleries) to discuss options for the space. Together we came to the idea of hanging serigraphs from xʷməθkʷəy̓əm artist Susan Point’s series on pillars located on the north side of the space. Opposite, on a wall shared with a computer lab are four prints by artists lessLIE (Penelakut and Esquimalt), Qwul'thilum (Dylan Thomas), and Maynard Johnny Jr. (Kwakwaka’wakw and Coast Salish). All the artworks were generously gifted by Christiane and George Smyth, and are held within the SFU Art Collection as part of the Salish Weave Collection.

After some further discussion, we decided to commission four weavings to recognize the Nations on whose territories SFU is located. As shared in an article about Angela George’s weaving she did for her Executive MBA in Indigenous Business Leadership capstone project, weavings are documents and are used to hold knowledge. Understanding the significance of weavings as documents is an important message for visitors to the ICRC, which aims to uplift Indigenous forms of literacy and knowledge sharing. 

Our weavings are ways of holding knowledge, they are documents in a sense. Our role as weavers is to hold that knowledge, express that knowledge. There’s a lot of very intricate meaning to all of the patterns and the shapes and the designs. - Angela George

Ideas @ Beedie, June 22, 2020

This project was made possible through the generous support of the Salish Weave Fund of Christiane and George Smyth, SFU External Relations, SFU Galleries and SFU Library. 

Weaving as a form of literacy and storytelling

Historically, euro-colonial understandings of textiles positioned Salish weaving as domestic, decorative, and everyday objects without considering them in their existing status as relational and political actors in complex Coast Salish social networks (Ariss, 2018). For many Salish weavers, contextualizing the spiritual, emotional, and affective aspects of their weaving practices is an integral part of understanding the importance of Salish weavings (Ariss, 2018). 

For Chepximiya Siyam Janice George (Sḵwxwú7mesh) and Skwetsimeltxw Willard ‘Buddy’ Joseph (Sḵwxwú7mesh), Salish blankets are “that foster rich social connections within, between and beyond Salish communities” (Ariss, 2018). In these ways, weaving is an integral practice that records and shares knowledge, and passes this knowledge onto others through visual storytelling. 

Salish weavings can “conceptually re-narrate and re-present spaces of colonial dispossession into places that become legible as unceded territory” by making visible the aspects of Coast Salish protocols that have and continue to operate beyond settler colonial conceptions of property and “fine art” (Ariss, 2018, p. 13). Asserting Coast Salish presence in the ICRC allows for the stories and literacy embedded in Salish weaving to be seen, noticed and uplifted in a space centered around Indigenous worldviews.

To learn more about Salish weavings and the wooly dogs whose fur was traditionally used along with mountain goat wool, read the annotated bibliography prepared by Courtney Vance (2024).

The weavings 

The Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre (ICRC) now hosts four weavings by Coast Salish artists and weavers Debra Sparrow (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm), Angela George (Sḵwxwú7mesh and səlilwətaɬ), Chief Janice George and Buddy Joseph (Sḵwxwú7mesh), and Atheana Picha (q̓wa:ńƛəń). The weavings are located in W.A.C. Bennett Library, on the north side of the fourth floor. Debra and Angela’s weavings are hung on the western side of the ICRC, with Chief Janice and Buddy and Atheana’s weavings hung on the eastern side.

Weaving is part of the Salish tree of life; from the roots of this tree grow the teachings that form the Coast Salish worldview. - Chief Janice George 

Tepper, George & Joseph, 2017, p. 31

 

Weavings done by Atheana Picha and Chief Janice George and Buddy Joseph hanging above bookcases.
L to R: Weavings by Atheana Picha (Kwantlen First Nation) and Chief Janice George and Buddy Joseph (Squamish Nation). 
Photograph by Rachel Topham Photography
Weavings by Debra Sparrow and Angela George hanging above bookcases.
L to R: Weavings by Debra Sparrow (Musqueam Nation) and Angela George (Squamish Nation).
Photograph by Rachel Topham Photography

About the weavers

Debra Sparrow (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm)

Debra Sparrow was born and raised on the Musqueam Indian Reserve and is a self-taught artist, designer, weaver, and jewelry-maker. Debra has been weaving for over twenty years and is dedicated to the revival of Musqueam weaving. Through courses taught at Langara College, weavings in the Vancouver International Airport, large murals like her Blanketing the City series, various publications and many other exhibits and contributions, Debra states that her hope is to educate others about the beauty and integrity of her peoples’ history through her art practices. 

Angela George (Sḵwxwú7mesh)

Angela George of Sḵwxwú7mesh Nation, and is a graduate of the Master’s of Business Administration program at SFU. Her capstone project is titled Weaving Governance - Highlighting a Tsleil-Waututh Traditional Law and Governance. She practices traditional Sḵwxwú7mesh weaving, traditional canoe racing, and cultural singing and dancing. Angela has dedicated her career to the betterment of First Nations peoples and communities, and has a strong understanding of traditional and spiritual teachings, and the impacts of colonization on First Nations communities. “She believes that practicing traditions, having a strong sense of identity, and connection to ancestry is vital to community wellness, development, and sustainability” (Vancouver Biennale, 2020). 

Chief Janice George and Buddy Joseph (Sḵwxwú7mesh)

Chepximiya Siyam Janice George of Squamish Nation is a hereditary chief, trained museum curator, and educator who graduated from Capilano University and the Institute of American Indian Arts. Chief Janice co-organized the first Canada Northwest Coast Weavers Gathering, with other Squamish Nation Weavers. She explains that this education helped her excel as a teacher adding to her most important traditional teachings. Skwetsimeltxw Willard ‘Buddy’ Joseph of Squamish Nation is the former director of the Squamish Housing and Capital Projects and currently consults on capital projects for First Nations communities. Both George and Joseph have numerous ceremonial and cultural responsibilities in their community.

Atheana Picha (q̓wa:ńƛəń)

Athena Picha of Kwantlen First Nation is an interdisciplinary artist, working mostly in 2-dimensional media. She has been undergoing two apprenticeships learning Salish wool weaving with Debra Sparrow (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm) since 2019, and learning silver engraving with artist and educator Aaron Nelson-Moody (Sḵwxwú7mesh) since 2018. Atheana has studied various art disciplines at Langara College, has mural work throughout the greater Vancouver area, is a two-time recipient of the YVR Art Foundation Emerging Artist Scholarship, and works at various collections. Her art practice is grounded in learning about Salish design through studying old pieces, observing nature, and learning from elders and teachers. 

More information

References

About. (n.d.). Atheana Picha. 

Angela George. (2020, October 29). Vancouver Biennale.  

Ariss, A. (2018). “Wrapped in Wool: Coast Salish wool weaving, Vancouver’s public art, and unceded territory”. Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings. 1066.

Debra Sparrow. (2023). Authentic Indigenous Arts Resurgence Campaign | Promoting and Supporting Authentic Indigenous Artworks.  

Tepper, L. H., George, J., & Joseph, W. (2017). Salish Blankets

Who we are. (n.d.). L’hen Awtxw Weaving House. 

Written by Courtney Vance, December 2023.

For more information see: SFU Galleries: Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre Coast Salish Weaving Commission