Intro to Northwest Coast Art & Culture

Intro to Northwest Coast Art & Culture

Objectives

• We can simplify and exaggerate subjects into abstract designs

• Nature can inspire abstract designs and decorations

• We can emphasize an object’s function by decorating it

Northwest Coast Peoples

Social Groups & Art

Station 1:

Sondra Simone Segundo

1.

Click the link below to watch
the video.

2.

On the next two slides,
fill-in-the-blanks using text
boxes.

Click Here to Watch the Video

Drag and Drop

Formline Design is an art form created & used by the First Nations Peoples of the American & Canadian ​

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Coast. It is a system of interlocking shapes to create lines that define a ​

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.​

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

North West

South West

South East

North East

Subject

Form

Shape

Drag and Drop

For​

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years, Northwest Coast peoples have used formline art to design, ​

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Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

Thousands

Hundreds

Millions

Carve, & Paint

Colour, & Etch

Shape, & Form

Drag and Drop

Formline art consists of certain ​

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that are drawn out one by one. When all the shapes are put together and colored in a

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is formed.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

shape(s)

form(s)

texture(s)

value(s)

line(s)

space(s)

Drag and Drop

A lot of teachers or history books teach about the ​

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of First Nations Peoples, but not how they live and​​

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in today’s society.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

past

thrive

cope

get by

future

present

Station 2:

Northwest Coast
Social Structure

1.

Read the slides describing
Northwest Coast society and social structure.

2.

Answer the fill-in-the-blank
questions and diagram

Open Ended

Often First Nations art is depicted as something that belongs to the past.

1. How does Sondra Segundo challenge this in her art and/or art classes?

2. Why is this important?

Northwest Coast Peoples

• The map shows other First Nations cultures located along the Northwest coast of Canada & the USA.

• They all use Formline Design in their Artworks

• Similar yet DISTINCT groups

• Their customs, beliefs, and histories are passed down orally through stories, songs, & dances.

Labelling

Label the map with some of the groups of the Northwest Coast to show their traditional locations

Drag labels to their correct position on the image

Tsimshian

Salishan

Nuu-chah-nulth

Haida

Tlingit

Family & Social Structure

Moieties: Each society is broken up into at least two groups
• Eagles
• Ravens
*** You could not marry someone from the
same moiety. You were considered related.

Clans and Households: Sub groups of each moiety
• Each has the right to a different crest & stories
• Crests represent creatures their
ancestors interacted with in the
legendary past.

Function of Northwest Coast Art

1. Shows where you belong in a society:
   (e.g your position & family relationships)
   

2. Sharing Cultural Stories & Family Histories

Drag and Drop

Northwest Coast peoples are composed of

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yet ​

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groups who each have their own customs, beliefs, and histories, which are traditionally passed down ​

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through stories,

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, & dances.​

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

Similar

Distinct

Dissimilar

orally

songs

in writing

morse code

Multiple Choice

True or false: A member of the Eagle moiety MUST marry someone else from the Eagle moiety

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: Each Clan and Sub-Clan had the right to different crests & stories

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: Crests represent legendary creatures one of their ancestors interacted with in the legendary past

• True

• False

Multiple Select

What are some functions of Northwest Coast Art?

• Shows your position in society

• Share Stories

• Share Family Histories

• Hoarde Wealth

• Show kinship/family Relationships

–Art Making Tradition

“In Tsimshian culture, a story is told in oral
form, in written form from crests, and from symbols such as totem poles [which] focus on some of the clan histories...”

Station 3:

Basic Shapes of Formline Design

1. As you read through the slides, draw an example of each shape in the space provided

2. Fill in the diagram at the end

Form Line Colours

• Black used to create strong contour lines & define the main parts

• Red is often a secondary colour and adds detail

• Occasionally the artist will reverse this order

Ovoids & Inner-Ovoids

• Most commonly used

• Look like rounded rectangles

• Can be elongated or compressed

• Thicker on top, thinner on bottom

• Ovoids help define outside shapes

• Inner Ovoids fill in negative space

• May have been inspired by the shape of salmon roe on a rock

U Form

Also common & varies in proportion

Used to:

• contour the body
  

• form ears, tails, flukes, etc.
  

• Fill open spaces
  

• Represent small feathers

Split-U Form

• Secondary element

• Seen in ears, feathers, tails, and many open spaces

• Often used within a U-form

• The shape may have been inspired by Whale Tails

S Form

• Fill in spaces

• Connect different parts to create an outline

• Used for eyebrows & gills

• A series might represent a ribcage

T-Shape

• Sometimes this is the negative space
  formed inside a Split-U shape

• Other times it can be positive space

• Fill in the T-Shape = the positive

space

• U-Shape is negative space

Noses and Mouths

Eyes

Labelling

Review: Label the Different Shapes

Drag labels to their correct position on the image

Inner Ovoid

T-Shape

Ovoid

Split-U

S-Shape

U-Shape

Draw

Follow the video & draw the design being demonstrated in the video

Option: You can also choose to do this in your sketchbook. If so, please attach a photo of your drawing to this assignment after you've finished your quiz. Write "Drew on paper" on the screen so I know to check your attachments.

Multiple Select

According to the video and the slides, where can we find the ovoid shape in nature?

• Salmon Eggs on a rock

• Mushroom

• Your thumb or palm

• Waves

The Potlatch

​Click HERE to read about the Potlatch

Multiple Choice

What is a potlatch?

• a special ceremony held by the Northwest Indigenous people

• a supper where everyone brings one dish

• a birthday party

• a sleepover

Multiple Choice

What does the word "potlatch" mean?

• to celebrate

• to perform

• to give

• to eat

Multiple Choice

The purpose of the potlatch is to...

• Recognize class structure and status

• Pass on a family’s rights and privileges (e.g. the right to specific dances, songs, stories)

• Celebrate the naming of babies, passing on of chief titles, and names held within a family

• Honor important people who have passed on

• All of the above and more

Multiple Select

One Potlatch gift someone might expect to recieve in the 1800s might be

• Oolichan Oil

• Hudson's Bay Blankets

• Silver Jewlery

• Laundry Baskets

• Woven Cedar Blankets

Multiple Select

One Potlatch gift someone might expect to recieve in the 1900s might be

• Oolichan Oil

• Hudson's Bay Blankets

• Silver Jewlery

• Laundry Baskets

• Woven Cedar Blankets

Multiple Select

One Potlatch gift someone might expect to recieve in the 2000s might be

• Oolichan Oil

• Hudson's Bay Blankets

• Silver Jewlery

• Laundry Baskets

• Woven Cedar Blankets

Multiple Select

For the Kwakwaka'wakw, being wealthy means...

• Having a lot of money in your savings account

• Accumulating a lot of property and stuff for your own use

• Accumulating a lot of stuff so you can give it away

The Potlatch Ban

​Click HERE to read about the history & impact of the Potlatch Ban

​Watch the video to learn about the Potlatch Ban

Fill in the Blanks

Multiple Select

Why did Canada create the Potlatch Ban?

• They had First Nations Peoples best interests at heart

• They thought it would make First Nations Peoples more "civilized"

• They didn't understand the Potlatch & thought it was bad

• They were trying to eliminate Indigenous culture.

Multiple Choice

True or False: First Nations Peoples could be arrested for participating in a Potlatch

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: If arrested, participants were given a choice: surrendering their potlatch regalia (to prevent them from having future potlatches) or going to jail.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: Most of the confiscated (i.e. stolen) regalia were eventually returned

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or false: Because of the Potlatch Ban, the First Nations Peoples of the Northwest Coast stopped having Potlatches entirely.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

The Potlatch Ban was finally lifted in...

• 1950

• 1940

• 1960

• 1970

Multiple Choice

However, it would take until ____ for people to feel comfortable participating openly in potlatches

• 1950

• 1940

• 1960

• 1970

Open Ended

Imagine this scenario before answering the question:

Imagine your favorite event or holiday (e.g. Eid or Christmas). One day, the Federal government says you are no longer allowed to celebrate this holiday. If you do, you and your family will be arrested, thrown in jail (with no lawyer to represent you), and have all of your gifts, family heirlooms, art, and food confiscated.

How would you feel AND what would you do? Explain why:

Multiple Choice

Haida Gwaii is located in an archipelago. What is an archipelago?

• a mountain

• a group of islands

• a desert

• a river

Multiple Choice

What type of tree did the Northwest peoples use to make tools, clothing and homes?

• pine

• birch

• cedar

• fir

Multiple Choice

The home in the Northwest Coast region were made out of cedar trees. These homes were called:

• Big house

• Daub house

• Plank house

• Teepee

Multiple Choice

Before contact, clothing in this cultural region was primarily made from:

• Cedar Bark & Roots

• Silk
• Wool
• Cotton

Multiple Choice

Why did the Haida population decrease from 2500 to 600 people?

• The Europeans brought new diseases.

• There was a flood.

• There was a hurricane.

• There was a war between them and another tribe.

Multiple Choice

What was looted from Haida Gwaii?

• totem poles

• human remains

• ceremonial headdresses

• All of the above

Station 5:

Trudeau’s Haida Tattoo

1. Read the article posted below

2. Answer the questions on the following slides

​Click here to read the article

Open Ended

According to the article, who is Robert Davidson?

Open Ended

Explain: What are two reasons why Davidson, and other First Nations peoples are not happy with Trudeau’s tattoo?

Open Ended

You walk into a tattoo parlor with a screenshot of a design you found online by your favorite Pinterest or Etsy artist. You ask the tattoo artist to tattoo it on your arm. Why might this ALSO be a violation of Western Canadian values?

Open Ended

What is the difference between purchasing a pair of Sondra Segundo's decorated sneakers to wear vs. tattooing Robert Davidson's on your shoulder? Is there a difference? Explain your thinking.

Virtual Tour | Living Tradition, The Kwakwaka'wakw Potlatch on the Northwest Coast

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Multiple Choice

After looking around the virtual gallery, which of these pictures shows a Bentwood Box or Bowl

Multiple Choice

After looking around the virtual gallery, which of these pictures shows a Copper

Multiple Choice

Due to the Potlatch Ban, Residentail Schools, the Indian Act, and the looting of Northwest Coast material culture, the pracitce of Formline Design has died out

• True

• False