We visited so many artists in our Sunshine Coast Art Crawl 2011 (from Langdale to Lund) that it’s almost impossible to write about all of them. But one that I wanted to write because her kindness was just simply amazing was April White. We (Robyn, Andrea, Andrea and myself) had an opportunity to see her art at the Wind Spirit Gallery in Powell River.
I was fascinated by April’s rendition of a hummingbird, her creation “Hummingbird I“. Here is the description she provided me with (along with a postcard print that is now in my apartment’s walls).
Dakdakiiyaa (Hummingbird) is a member of the Trochilidae Clan and in Northwest Coast imagery is recognizable by its long slender beak and outspread wings, ready for flight. This latter characteristic emphasizes its unique ability to fly in any direction. Indeed, this phenomenon, signaled by a musical buzz, iridescent flash and blur, facilitates its supernatural travel between human world and spirit world. In this depiction, sheltering under its mother’s wing, is a naked hatchling with mouth agape in expectation of a sweet meal. This repast of nectar has been gathered from the throats of hundreds… thousands of flowers, then whisked to the nest at the forest edge; a home insulated with moss, lichen, down and spider webs.
Once, the traditional order of Haida matrilineal succession was jeopardized by the capture of a high born Haida Eagle Clan woman at Lax Kw’alaams (Port Simpson). This order was restored by the delivery of her children home to Haida Gwaii with the gift of the Hummingbird as a new family crest.
April is a scientist by training (she received her Bachelor of Science degre in geology from the University of British Columbia), and it’s wonderful to me that she has now derived into becoming an artist, which I am assuming stems from her Haida heritage. April White was born on Haida Gwaii, the Queen Charlotte Islands. You can see (and buy) more of April’s art at the Wind Spirit Art Gallery, 4463 Marine Avenue, Powell River, BC, or visit her website.
Disclosure: I participated on the Sunshine Coast Art Crawl 2011 as part of a media trip. My accommodations and transportation were compliments of our hosts and the tourism agencies in charge. I paid for a few miscellaneous expenses associated with this trip, specifically incidentals and my own shopping etc. April was generous enough to give me a free card with the imprint of Hummingbird I, but that doesn’t influence my post at all. You can follow along my adventures on the Sunshine Coast through this tag.
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