Shashish|Anutshish : a virtual museum to explore past and present First Nations culture.
Contemporary
First Peoples
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Title of the work
Side table.
Paul Blacksmith
As a child, Paul was taught to carve with a curved knife under the guidance of his grandfather and other elders in the community. He began living off his art at the age of 15. Knowledgeable about traditional culture, Paul is also interested in native spirituality, rituals and sacred objects. He is one of the very few who have been introduced to the art of making the teueikan, the traditional Innu drum, a ritual which lasts many hours and uses specific materials and symbolic motifs.
Description
(2005) Birch, "ligneous" material, veneer.
"The drum is an object which impresses me. A very sacred object. I consulted with two elders to determine if I could use the drum as a creative source. I asked, among other things, if I could replace the caribou hide with wood. I wanted to honour and respect the drum. The elders told me that I had been given a gift by the Creator, a gift to use with honour and respect. I then created these objects respecting the truth, neither lying to myself nor to the elders I had spoken with. A dream I had provided inspiration for the shape of the drum beaters. I used this same shape to sculpt the table legs."